The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings
by Karigan Marie
Summary: Numair and Daine's daughter, Jade, must confront herself and her magic. If she is to contain the power within her, she must first learn the most important lesson of all. You can't control what you fear.
1. Add Red to The List

            **_This is the third story in my series – 'The Secret Magic'.  If you have not read the previous two stories, I would highly suggest starting off with them first, as you may become somewhat confused by this one._**

**_            I would like to thank all of my reviews at fanfiction.net.  You have all been a great inspiration to me.  I would not have had the courage to continue this story if you had not shown me such support._**

**            _Let me give a brief summary of the first two stories to remind the audience of what has occurred up to this point:_**

                        _The Secret Magic: 1: Complications ~_

                                    _Numair and Daine try to live out their new life together in peace.  But complications give them heartache and trouble.  They discover the central point of the problem involves  a rare immortal, whose species is known to only inhabit a land far south of the Carthaki borders.  Trapped by a mage who has found magical tools to control the small female immortal, Numair and Daine fight a dangerous battle to set her free.  It nearly costs them their lives; and eventually, takes Daine, who carries an unborn child, to the very edge of death.  Yet hope is restored when the secret and silent friends of the immortal species answers the female immortal's pleas for mercy.  The plants and trees themselves go against their own laws and save the life of Daine and her unborn child with its potent magic.  And by the simplest of tricks, Kitten, Daine's dragonet, releases the immortal from her magical cage, allowing her to go home.  But even with this happy ending, all is not over.  The mage that began this entire mess escaped their grasps and has fled to Carthak to hide among his sympathizers.  There he will rally his supporters and build up a rebel army that will lead us into the second story of this series…_

                        _The Secret Magic: 2: Uncontrollable ~_

                                    _Numair and Daine have born a child, a girl called Jade, aptly named for her vibrant green eyes.  As she grows, her family and friends begin to notice that Jade has no ordinary Gift or Wild Magic.  It is something far different, far more powerful.  She carries a connection to the wild greenery, the flora.  All plants bend to her will, or, more accurately, lack there of.  Jade seems unable to control the magic inside her body, and it often times causes conflict among the community.  Tragedy strikes and Jade looses her mother to the rebel army.  Trying to protect what is left of his family, Numair whisks Jade to __Southern Carthak__, to a small city know as Kilbao.  Positive that she will be safe in the relatively obscure city, Numair must go back north to fight in the war that has broken out.  Sadly, by chance, Kilbao is struck by rebels and burnt to the ground.  The children of Kilbao, including Jade herself, are taken into illegal slavery.  While on the road south, Jade's magic appears in an unwanted circumstance that will forever leave a mark on Jade's mind.  But how long that is comes into question when moments later, in the middle of a pitch dark night, she falls from the edge of a cliff while trying to escape her captors, falling to certain death.  All hope seems lost…_

_…and so we step into the next part of this story…_

                        _The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings ~_

                                    _A new world, a new life; Jade must face the facts about her magic and herself.  She must learn her own strength, her own will, her own limits.  If she is to ever be able to contain the power that lies within her, she must first learn the most important lesson of all.  She cannot control what she fears…_

*****

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

By: Karigan Marie

Chapter 1: Add Red to the List

*****

            A red blur was all that came to mind as Jade Salmalin came into consciousness.  The color swirled and flowed across her mind in odd patterns, confusing her subdued mind.  How odd was it that the last thing she saw when she fell from the cliff was nothing but red, and now, the first thing she saw when she woke up from it was, wouldn't you have it, red.  Well, she thought casually, might as well add red to the list.  She wondered how many colors would signify death to her by the time she really _did_ die.  Ever so slowly, the odd shapes came into focus, and along with the red, she now noticed some orange and yellow.  She could focus more now, the colors separating and developing more defined lines between each one.  Finally, they stopped shifting and settled into place.  Red, orange and yellow strips of silken fabric hung above her, draping over one another.  They shifted and moved leisurely in a soft wind.

            She blinked slowly, unwilling to break away from her state of rest just yet; she was much too comfortable for that.  Gradually, she felt the fogginess melt away from her mind and she found the curiosity to shift her eyes slightly.  The soft, silky fabric draped across the entire enclosure she was in, there wasn't a bit of ceiling or wall that was not softened by the fabrics presence.  She didn't notice a door or window, but a warm breeze blew through the enclosure, bringing with it more smells than Jade had ever imagined possible.  Spices filled her senses to the brim, making her take a deep breath.

            She began to notice than that she was on something very soft.  It was a bed, of sorts.  It was large, enough to fit two or three large adults, her feet didn't reach near the end.  Underneath her, the mattress was feather soft, so much so, that, she had actually sunk down into the material.  The pillow seemed made of something similar, it too had molded around her head.  She was covered up to the middle of her chest by a thick deep orange and matching yellow blanket that was silky and cool to the touch.  She lay on her back in the middle of the incredible softness.

            She was confused, but couldn't bring herself to really mind.  She was _much_ too comfortable.  She began to do an all over body check with her eyes, shifting as little as humanly possible; it wouldn't do to ruin the utter comfort she was in.  She was clean.  That was the first thing she noticed.  Not one inch of dirt that had caked her body during her captured trip was evident.  Her hair, which had grown out some from Mistress Messina's chop job was clean and dry, spread out casually over the pillow.  Her arms and legs slid easily under the silky blanket.  She didn't feel a single scratch or bruise, the back of her head felt fine.  She noticed she was dressed in odd clothing.  Long soft deep yellow satin breeches that flowed down her legs and some type of matching undershirt with only a thin strap of fabric over each shoulder were things she had never seen before.

            She lifted herself onto her elbows, rising up a bit to get a better look around.  in the region of the bed were various small circular tables, their silky skirts rustled silently in the same soft warm breeze.  The small tables carried intricately designed glass bowls and jars, small mighty looking birds adorned them gracefully.  Each bowl or jar held what appeared to be dried herbs and spices; some had spilt over the edges and onto the silky fabric, dancing ever so lightly in that same gentle breeze.

            The floor was covered with satiny soft material that bunched up on itself at several places.  Overall, the enclosure was no more than 10 feet across.  She wasn't even sure if it was square or round.  She had no idea where she was, had no idea who had brought her here; yet she was so incredibly comfortable, she still had not brought up any feelings of alarm.  Confusion however, was foremost in her mind.  She heard some rustling outside the enclosure a few seconds before some of the silk fabric parted and streams of white sunlight burst through the room.  She squinted and lifted one hand to shield her eyes.  A form blocked some of the bright light, but being lighted by the back, the silhouette made it impossible to see who it was.  But then the fabric fell back into place and the form revealed itself to be a small round women.

            She was fairly short, but her rounded body gave her more presence.  She had glossy raven black hair that, even tightly braided and over one shoulder, reached the bottom of her stomach.  Her skin was dark brown, but different than any she'd ever seen; the dark skin tone bordered on a golden hue.  The woman's eyes were dark brown with eyebrows as dark as her hair.  What was most odd about her was her clothing.  It seemed to be some kind of dress…but, it was hard to tell.  There were no petticoats or layers; it was soft thin blue material that flowed down from her waist to her toes.  Golden threads had been made to form beautiful pictures all over it, from birds with eccentric tail feathers, to large four legged animals that had long horns.  Perhaps it was actually wrapped around her, because it seemed that the skirt wasn't actually connected, the material flowed as it had been placed across the chest and rested over the opposite shoulder, swinging behind her one side as she moved.  Her shirt was form fitting and had sleeves that didn't even reach to the middle of her upper arms.  Soft leather brown sandals adorned her feet and she noticed markings around her ankles.  It was the oddest thing Jade had ever seen on _anyone._  But oddly, it was very pretty and seemed to fit the warm humid air nicely.

            The woman smiled nicely but guardedly at her and began to speak.  Jade sat up all the way, bringing up her knees slightly as the woman continued to talk…but Jade couldn't understand her.  The words were none she had ever heard before; they flowed on and on and so quickly Jade was somewhat disconcerted.  The woman walked to one of the tables beside the bed and reached for a glass and pitcher, talking to her as if she understood every word and nuance.  Jade opened her mouth to speak, had to clear it, it was so rusty, and finally spoke.  "I'm…I'm…sorry, ma'am…I don't…I don't quite understand what you're saying."

            The woman turned to her and nodded, gently patting the hand that rested in Jade's lap.  She poured some water and handed it to her.  Jade took it gratefully and began to drink it quickly.  As she gulped down the liquid, she noticed the design on the clear glass.  There appeared to be engraved pictures of nymph like women; yet they seemed to have wings, like butterflies, and they looked exceptionally wild, the hair flying in every which way, their postures seemed excited and lively.  She was startled when the woman began talking anew, just as before.  She finally stopped to take a breath and Jade took the opportunity for a quick, "Thank you," gesturing to her glass.  The woman smiled, nodded and again began her rant.  She moved around the room doing odd things, carrying on the conversation endlessly.  Jade was at a loss.  She interrupted the woman.  "I'm sorry.  I…I don't understand."

            The silk fabrics that served as walls parted again then, and Jade squinted her eyes.  In came a tall man dressed in white cloth with silver threads adorning it richly.  He smiled warmly at her.  "Anabaya doesn't speak your language, but she doesn't let that get in her way."  He smiled at the woman and then turned his white pearly teeth on her.  Jade was shocked by the rich accent that he carried.  It made his words flow into each other without muddling them; it made her grin.  His golden brown skin was slightly darker than the woman's, but his facial features were very similar.  "I am glad you have woken up, Epaissur."

            Jade blinked.  "I'm sorry.  What did you call me?"

            He smiled.  "Epaissur…it means…little enchanted one."

            "Oh."

            His smile grew wider.  "It fits you well, I can see."  He pointed to her eyes.  "I have never seen anyone with eyes of your color."

            She shifted awkwardly.  The woman mixed some herbs over a table.  "I'm sorry.  Umm…where am I?"

            He sat at the end of the bed, his weight sinking in.  "You are in my village, Solandia.  I am the chief, kayandu; this…" he motioned to the woman, "…is my sister, Anabaya."  The woman smiled.

            "Umm…where is Solandia?  I've never heard of it."

            He nodded.  "I understand that you are from the great North, very far away.  That is past the great mountains north of us."  Jade wasn't to sure on the geography, it seemed confusing.  "But you have not told us your name, Epaissur," he said gently.

            She looked up at him in surprise.  "Oh, I'm sorry, forgive me.  My name is Jade.  Jade Salmalin."

            He nodded and smiled.  "It suits you."  She gave a half grin, partly in annoyance.  _Everyone_ said that.

            "And how old are you, Epaissur?"

            "Ten, sir."  Her eyes fell to the glass of water that her hands toyed with.  Noticing her own skin soft and healed, she wondered just how _long_ she had been unconscious.  "How long…I mean, when did I…?"  She wasn't too sure how to word her question.

            He seemed to understand despite her lack of articulation.  "You were brought to us more than a moon cycle ago.  You have been healing ever since."  Jade's mouth gapped at the man.  Over a _month_? Her eyes skirted across the bed.  "You were very ill," he said softly.  "We feared we would loose you.  Much of your body was scratched and torn, your bones weak, your body without the proper amount of water, a very bad injury on your head was infected…" he told her softly.  "But our herbs have much power here.  You took to their healing benefits _very_ well."

            "You…didn't fine me?" she asked curiously.

            He shook his head.  "She brought you to us, asked us to watch over you until you healed."

            "Who…Liana?"

            He shook his head.  "No.  She was like you, an Epaissur."

            "I don't know who you mean."  She shifted slightly.

            "You will.  She promised to come back for you when you were well again."

            She swallowed.  "Come back for me?"

            "You will go with her once you have healed."

            "Who?" she said again.  "I don't know who you mean.  I want to go home, to Carthak."

            He looked a bit lost.  "I imagined you would be.  I was told you were to be taken home.  But I do not know where Carthak is? Is that the great North?"

            "I don't know…" she said miserably.  "I'm so confused."

            He patted her leg.  "All will turn out well.  You will see.  For now, you must rest.  You are still weak from your ordeal.  But first thing's first, you must eat."  Jade hadn't noticed Anabaya had left the small enclosure.  The woman stepped back inside carrying a tray made of ivory richly engraved with figures of what appeared to be tiger cubs, complete with miniature stripes, the whiteness of the ivory seemed an odd color on the figures.  The delicate tray held steaming food that let out waves of steam that filled Jade's nose with a million smells.  Jade's stomach growled so loudly, it startled her.  Kayandu laughed, took the tray from his sister and placed it gently on Jade's lap.  "Eat, Epaissur.  You must regain your strength."

            Jade picked up a piece of what appeared to be chicken.  There were no utensils, so she figured she'd just use her hands.  It was warm, but not enough to burn her fingers.  She placed it in her mouth and chewed.  It was the most intense combination of herbs that had ever touched her tongue, and it made her mouth salivate so quickly and intensely, the sides of her jaw hurt for a moment.  Within a few seconds the intensity grew to such strength, she was forced to drink some water.  Her eyes watered and she coughed.

            Kayandu laughed heartily and patted her back.  "Perhaps those from the great North do not have the flavors that we have here."  She nodded her head in agreement and popped another piece into her mouth, the riot of tastes it caused in her mouth just as powerful and wonderful as the first bite had been.

*****

In Tortall:

            Numair Salmalin stood in one of the far corners of the horse fields outside the Palace in Corrus.  The early summer sun shone down, warming his body rapidly.  There was a slight breeze that rustled the black and occasional gray hairs on his head.  He stood with his arms crossed, his face starring down at a beautifully crafted gravestone.  It was two feet high and had various animal shapes shaven into it, each one positioned in a glorious stance.  The words on it were clear.

_The First Wild Mage_

_Veralidaine Salmalin_

_Beloved Daughter of Wyrein and Sara_

_ Treasured Wife of Numair_

_Cherished Mother to Jade_

            Directly underneath the tombstone, above where Veralidaine lay in eternal rest, a new dark grey stone plague lay against the ground, gold ivy vines and vanilla orchid buds had been chipped into the stone.  Its own small words a sad addition to those on the gravestone.

_Jade Salmalin_

_Beloved Daughter_

_The world seems less green without her eyes to adorn it._

            He stood in silence, looking down at the new stone plague.  A hand on his shoulder took him from his thoughts.  He turned his dark shadowed eyes towards his interrupter.  Alanna of Trebond stood there, in comfortable breeches and tunic, her hair, which she had allowed to grow just past her shoulders, fluttered in the wind.  Her violet stare was enough to show him her worry.  "I'm alright, Alanna."

            She swallowed tightly.  "You don't have to lie to me, Numair."

            His eyebrows scrunched in anger.  "What makes you think I'm lying?"

            She looked down at the dark stone that lay on the ground.  "Because I'm still not all right, and it's been two _years_ for me.  You didn't love your child any less than I did mine.  So you're not fine."

            He let out a breath and turned back to the grave.  "Does it ever hurt less, Alanna?" he asked softly.

            Tears brimmed her eyes as she thought about her own lost child.  She shook her head.  "No," came the cracked whisper.  "But you learn to live with it.  Everyday you take a step closer to accepting it."

            He swallowed thickly.  "You have George," he said jealously.  "…and Eleni and Miles."

            She looked at him with hurt eyes.  "That doesn't make it hurt any less, Numair.  I could have ten other children, love them all and it wouldn't hurt any less."  Tears trickled down her face.  She wiped them away angrily.

            He sighed and placed his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into a friendly hug.  He remembered the day they had buried Thom in the Noble Tombs.  Alanna had been devastated, and even with her entire family there, they hadn't been enough to comfort her.  She sighed heavily and pulled away, drying her tears on her sleeve.  "I heard Atune arrived last night."

            He nodded.  "I had one of my servants from Kilbao bring her.  She's resting.  It was a long trip."

            Alanna sat on the soft grass, running fingers along the stone.  "How is she?"

            He sighed.  Permanently blind.  How would you be?"

            Her lip twitched.  "Relieved."  At his look, she continued.  "…to be alive, that is."

            "She's been hurt so much.  I wonder sometimes if she's capable of handling this."

            "She's a strong girl.  She won't let this drag her down."  
            "With Jade…gone…she's not…she's not happy."

            Alanna scratched a leg.  "What is she going to do now?"

            "I'll take care of her.  I'm having her stay here at the palace.  I've hired some permanent servants to attend to her."

            Alanna nodded.

            "When do you return north?" he asked.

            "Next week.  It's been so long since the four of us have been together; I almost forgot what it felt like."  He nodded.  "Numair…?"  He looked at her in question.  "…George and I…we're both going to be up North.  Miles…he's to go east to fight with the Tyran army to push back Serain."

            Numair nodded.  He'd heard as much.

            "He's got friends on that front.  I'm not too worried about him."

            "You're worried about Eleni," he supplied for her.

            "Jon's sending her to Carthak, to help train troops.  I know you'll only be down at the capital erratically, but…"

            "You want me to look out for her," he almost smiled at the thought.

            "I just…she'll be alone.  And she hasn't really ever gotten past Thom.  I don't want her to feel like she has no friends."  Alanna sighed.  "She puts on a brave front.   But I can see she's still not doing well."

            He patted her leg.  "I'll do what I can when I travel to Carthak."

            She smiled up at him.  "Thank you, Numair.  I know you have a lot on your mind…"

            He stretched out and smiled sadly down at her.  "Eleni isn't the only one putting up a brave front, Alanna."  He turned and walked back towards the palace.  Alanna sighed.  Numair was right.  She was putting on just as much as Eleni was.  But she wondered if he would turn that idea on himself.  He was putting on more than anyone else.

*****

A/N: Hope you like it.  Please review.  I feed of them.  REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW!!!

Next chapter: Waiting in Solandia

                        To take you home

                        Here are the facts about you

                        To feel like this forever

                        One Piper, two Pips


	2. Waiting in Solandia

Ok…I'm at the end of my spring break.  And I thought I'd give you all another chapter…but first..i have got to tell you all about the amazingness of my spring break:

I went to New York, New York…cool huh….but here is the part that will make many of you swoon…as it did me.

I went to go see "The Boy from Oz" on Broadway…staring….HUGH "gorgeous as all else" Jackman.  Now, if you know me, you know that I'm violently in love with Mr. Jackman.  Out of all celebrities…he is, without a doubt, my favorite.  And if you don't know who Hugh Jackman is….he played Wolverine in the X-men movie.  So…I got to see him live on stage…and I was so happy and swooned and it was all very swoon worthy, even if his character was homosexual.  But here is the best part…after the show, I went to the stage door, where all the actors come out and….oh my dear lord god, got his signature on the poster for the show….I got to shake hands with Hugh Jackman…I got his signature…I …almost…died!

So…I just wanted to tell you all that.  Actually, I wanted to brag madly.  Cause, you know…it's like, brag worthy.  Anyway…

Here's the next chapter…I think you'll all love it.

*****

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

By: Karigan Marie

Chapter 2: Waiting in Solandia

*****

            Jade opened her eyes groggily.  She shifted from her face down position to sit up in the amazingly soft bed.  Blinking, she looked around the small room she had woken up in.  She didn't remember falling asleep after her quick meal and chat with Kayandu.  She rubbed at the cool satin bed comforter.  It was interesting that, even with the hot humidity that seemed to fill every breath of air, the soft bed covers could feel so cool to the touch.  She looked around again and noticed little slivers of light peeking through the curtains of red, orange and yellow silk curtains.  She wasn't sure how long she'd been asleep this time.

            She lifted her bare arms above her head and stretched languidly.  She absently lifted her curly mass of hair off her neck, letting the damp tendrils dry out some.  She wiped away at the drops of sweat on her neck.  She's never felt such humidity in her life, not even on the hottest days in Carthak.  It wasn't 'hot', just humid.  She could feel the drops of water in every breath she took.  She pushed the heavy covers and sheets off her legs and swung them around to hang over the edge of the bed.  She was slightly surprised to see she was wearing different clothing.  The yellow satin top and loose fitting breeches were gone, replaced by soft purple ones.  They were essentially the same cut, just slightly different design on the top.  It rested more snuggly to her torso, the thin purple straps a bit thinner.  The breeches were just as loose as the others had been and felt just as soft and breezy.

            She pushed herself off the bed and let her feet fall to the satin covered floor.  She stood straight for only three seconds before she had to reach for one of the side tables to steady herself as her vision turned black.  She closed her eyes and waited for the vertigo to pass.  It took longer than she expected.  She took several deep breaths and let the wooziness completely pass before she dared open her eyes again.  She hadn't realized how weak she was.  She stood straight finally and took a few steps around the room.  She sat back down on the bed breathing heavily, her hands shaking.  She noticed a glass pitcher of water and a glass on the table next to her bed and reached for it.  Carefully, she poured herself the water and drank cupfuls.  Stopping her gulping to breath she looked at the glass designs and noticed the same female figures with wings.  They were beautifully crafted and detailed.

            She heard a small noise from somewhere and turned to look for it.  If you pressed her, Jade would have said it sounded like a cat, but it was different.  She looked around the room in confusion before finally sitting down again in exhaustion.  She scrunched her nose in curiosity when she heard the sound again, from underneath her.  She dropped to the floor and pulled up the satin bed sheets to look underneath the bed.  In the shadows she saw two piercing blue eyes seconds before it jumped at her.

            She squeaked in fright as something latched on to her nose.  She pulled back frantically and the little animal let go.  Jade rubbed at her nose, glad to notice the sharp teeth hadn't broken any skin.  She finally looked to the animal; her jaw dropped.

            Sitting right in front of her was a tiny cub... well, it _looked_ like a cub, sort of.  She knew there were lions in the Carthak menagerie.  Her mother had shown her pictures of them a long time ago.  The males had great fur manes and darker, the females, graceful and dangerous.  But this cub…well, it wasn't a lion.  She thought it to a tiger, but wasn't sure.  Her parents had never seen one, only pictures.  But they had described them to be golden brown and orange with dark brown strips.  This little cub was pure white, with black stripes.  An image of the ivory food tray Anabaya had brought in flashed in her mind.  She reached out slowly, and when the tiny cub didn't make a movement of protest, Jade picked the little thing up around the middle.  Its fur was soft and silky, its skin shifting with the movement.  She brought it to her lap and cuddled it for a moment before picking it up under its front legs and lifting it up.

            Quickly discovering its gender, she looked the cub over.  "Oh, you hansom boy!" she whispered in awe.  It made a mewing sound that was rougher than a cat's but still very small and helpless.  Jade grinned despite herself.  "Mama would have sold her wild magic to get a look at you."  The tiny cub wiggled back to her lap where it began licking at her hands.  She got a view of its sharp fangs when he playfully nipped at her and Jade wondered how he hadn't pierced her nose with those things.  The cub walked all around Jade, rubbing its body along her side, its long tail swishing from side to side.  When it passed over her lap again, the tail passed under her nose, causing her to sneeze and giggle slightly.

            "I see Prakash has found someone to indulge him in his play."  Jade looked up to see Kayandu walk inside the small enclosure.

            Jade grinned.  "He's very beautiful.  What is he?"

            Kayandu looked down at the small cub.  "Impossible, really."  Jade smiled despite herself.  "He is a white tiger."

            Jade nodded.  "I thought he looked like a tiger, but I've never heard of a white one before.  Are there many around here?"

            He smiled.  "There are many in the village, you'll see them.  Though there are hardly any in the wild.  In order to have a white tiger, to tigers with it in their blood must mate, and even then, there will not always be a white cub as a result.  We breed them here.  They serve as wonderful guardians."

            Jade nodded and sighed.  Placing the small cub on the satiny floor, she uncrossed her legs and stood.  She growled softly when her vision went black yet again.  She grasped the bed.

            "You should not be out of bed yet, Epassiur.  You are still very weak."

            Jade looked around.  "After a month, you'd think I'd be all better."

            He smiled softly.  "You were near death when you were brought here, Epassiur.  Half starved and desperately hurt.  It is true you have been recovering very well.  But you spent a moon's cycle with only the nourishment we could get inside you while unconscious.  You are still very small and thin.  Your body will take a long time to fully recover.  Your body will probably never be as it once was."

            That frightened Jade.  "What do you mean?  I'll never be better?"

            He soothed her.  "No, no, Epassiur.  You will be fine after some time.  I meant that the malnourishments your body has suffered will probably affect your growth.  You probably won't be as tall as you once thought.  And it will take will to put the meat back onto your bones that you have lost.

            Jade looked down at herself.  He was right about the weight she'd lost.  She cringed at the fact that through the tight satin shirt, she could easily see the outline of her ribs.  She'd have to work on that.

            He smiled.  You should get back into bed.  Anabaya will bring you some food soon.  Jade nodded and crawled back into her bed.  He patted her head gently before bending down and picking up the small cub.  It mewed loudly and wiggled.  "Prakash seems to want to stay with you, Epassiur."

            Jade reached for the small white tiger and placed him on her lap.  She looked up at Kayandu.  "Is there anyway I can send a message to Carthak; to my father?  I'm sure he's very worried about me."

            Kayandu spoke softly.  "I do not think you understand how far away this Carthak is.  It is past the great northern mountains.  Hardly anyone has every come from there to here or from here to there.  We have no contact with them.  The last time a visitor came from the north was over twelve years ago, before you were even born, Epassiur.

            Jade swallowed in unease.  "How am I going to get home, than?"

            Kayandu raised his eyebrows.  "To that, I have no answer; only what I have been told."

            "Who brought me here?" Jade asked urgently.  "Does she have a name?"

            He smiled.  "I imagine so.  Though she did not tell me.  Only that she would be back for you."

            Jade stared at him.  So you took in some girl; a girl you don't know and promised to look after her, with no form of payment or information?"

            He looked confused.  "You were hurt, Epassiur.  She could not look after you; did not know how.  So she came to me.  Would sort of man would I be to turn out a hurt child?"

            Jade sighed.  She was tired all of the sudden.  "How am I going to let him know I'm alright?"

            "Soon, Epassiur.  Soon.  I'm sure."

*****

            It had been two weeks of bed rest and Jade was ready to get out of bed.  Finally.  She woke up that morning with more energy than she'd had in a long time.  Countless days of stuffing herself full of deliciously spiced food had put a little, not much, but a little more weight on her.  She jumped from the soft bed and stripped off her blue night clothing, letting it fall to the soft floor.  Anabaya had drawn a bath for her in a corner of the room, apparently that's how Anabaya had cleaned her up when she was brought here.  It was a very large ceramic bath with small tables of varying sizes around it.

She stepped up the bath and ran her hands along the clear water.  She smiled widely when she discovered the water was cold; she still had not become accustomed to the sheer amount of humidity that hung in the air.  Quickly, gritting her teeth, Jade hopped in, yelping when the cold water made her jump.  She let the cool crisp water wash away all the sweat that had build up on her over the last few days.

Just as she was rinsing the last of the soap root out of her hair, Anabaya came in with various cloths.  She placed them on the bed with a smile and quickly left.  Jade quickly jumped out of the water, rung out her hair and stepped over to the bed.  She had been told her own clothing were too far-gone to ever be used again and had been disposed of after she'd seen them.

She cringed when she remembered the sheer amount of dried blood that had been caked all over the breeches and shirt.  They'd given her the folded piece of parchment that had been stuffed in her pants; she was surprised it survived the fall.  She decided to hang on to the interesting document; her father would want to see it when she got back.

She picked up the golden yellow silk fabric and gaped.  It was really quite pretty.  It wasn't like Anabaya's dress.  It was much simpler and Jade was relieved she wouldn't have to figure out how to put whatever Anabaya was wearing on.  She picked up the breeches and put them on.  They were very loose around the legs, flowing and swishing easily.  Then she eased the shirt over her head.  It had red threads designing various lines across the hem that reached down mid thigh.  It had long sleeves, and Jade wondered if it would be too hot to go out in so much clothing.  But the sleeves flared as they got to the wrists, allowing for air to travel through.  She put her feet in the tan sandals that laced around her legs and combed out her wet hair.

Jade rushed to the silk fabric where she had seen Kayandu an Anabaya go in and out of various times and pushed it aside, intent on finally exploring this Solandia.  She was greeted by blazing sunlight and the intensification of the ever-present spices in the air.  There were various other wood buildings all around, silk and satin fabric ornate on each.  All the doors were wide open, allowing for the breeze to enter each small house.  Silky fabric could be seen dancing gently in the doorways from the breeze.  There were lots of people walking about, attending to daily chores.  There were various men helping to build a house not too far away, all of them only wearing the breeches of their clothing, sweat glistening off their golden chests.  They called out to each other in their language.

Jade heard running water and looked to the left.  There was a flowing river with crystal water.  A grouping of women looked to be bathing their young children in it, chatting happily amongst themselves.  There were men and women walking about, some holding baskets of supplies, some casually chatting.  Some women were walking up from the stream with what appeared to be tall vases of water resting on their heads.  Children of all ages ran around.  The girls that looked to be around Jade's own age wore very similar dresses, all in different colors and designs.  Jade smiled.

She took a few steps out and nearly peed herself when an enormous white tiger causally walked by.  He stopped near her, sniffed at her a few times before walking on, a small child around the age of six or seven clinging to his back for the ride.  Jade swallowed with some difficulty.  She looked around some more.  She noticed four or five other white tigers milling about.  One near the river had all the appearance of looking after the grouping of children that played in it.  Another rested near the entrance of one of the wooden homes, casually lying about enjoying the sun.  It gave a great yawn that showed off its enormous razor sharp teeth.  In the distance, near the river she noticed several children cleaning off their horses, their little figures barely reaching the horse withers.  

Jade walked down the river some.  It was there that she got the biggest shock of all.  Huge elephants with odd saddles strapped about them as if they were horses carried several men across the river.  Jade stared in shock.  They weren't like the elephants back in Carthak.  Carthaki elephants were larger in general, though not by much.  The males stood an average of ten feet, females a little smaller.  They also had very large, floppy ears that cover their shoulders and a small, smooth forehead.  Both males and female Carthaki elephants had large tusks and had dips in their backs.  These elephants had much smaller ears, smaller tusks, the female's seemed almost non-existent, two humps on their foreheads, and an arched back.  What amazed Jade was the fact that they seemed to be used as a major source of transportation, tamed.  None of the Carthaki elephants were so tame.

She watched as elephant after elephant crossed the wide river, the deepest part reaching to the elephant stomach.  On their backs they carried various objects.  Jade raised her hand and placed against her forehead over her eyes to shield the falling sun's glare.  She could see into the distance; it was mostly flat land with an occasional hill, the river reaching as far as she could see.  The silhouettes of the elephants and men crossing the river, which sparkled gloriously from the falling sun; it made for a spectacular sight, one Jade thought would impress any royalty.  She smiled at the sights around her.  Over the next few days she see so many different animals it would have made her mother salivate.

There was the Black Buck, which looked like an antelope.  It had ringed horns that had moderate spiral twists of three or four turns and were over two feet long.  Mostly tan, it's black back stuck out.  The Sarus crane, Kayandu called it, was taller than any bird she had ever seen, the males almost six feet tall; its vibrant colors were amazing.  There was the rhinoceros, which they had in Carthak as well, but different.  These only had one horn and its skin had loose folds that made it appear almost armored.

She quickly discovered that the white tigers were among the village, not just for show, but also to protect the villagers from other wild cats, leopards.   These cats had elongated and muscular bodies.  Their paws were broad and their ears short.  They had short and sleek coats.  She saw hides at some of the homes.  The coloration varied from the color of straw to grayish to even chestnut.   The backs of the ears were black except for a spot either located centrally or near the tips, which she was told fooled other animals into thinking they were eyes.  The throat, chest, belly, and the insides of the limbs were white.  The rest of the head, throat, chest and limbs all had black spots.  The belly had larger black spots, almost like blotches.

The most beautiful animal she saw was called a peacock; she would never forget what it looked like.  The large, brightly colored birds had a distinctive crest and an unmistakable ornamental train that took up most of its body length.  She asked Kayandu to tell her about them, and what he'd told her amazed her.  The train, or tail, he said was formed by 100 to 150 highly specialized upper tail-coverts.  Each of these feathers sports an ornamental eyespot and has long disintegrated barbs, giving the feathers a loose, fluffy appearance; apparently only males had these.  When displaying to a female, the peacock erects the train into a spectacular fan, displaying the eyes to their best advantage.

Jade, who had never been all that interested in animals was awestruck at every turn.  There were so many new animals.  She was walking along the river a few days later when she came upon he most recent discovery.  The horses.  They were normal.  Looked like most other horses.  Except for one little detail.  They were the biggest horses Jade had ever laid eyes on.

She thought back to the first day she left her little room.  She had seen horses along the river being cleaned.  She had though that children had been standing next to them.  It dawned on her that they weren't children, but full-fledged men and the tallest barely reached the withers.  When she stepped closer to look, she noticed their hoofs were the size of dinner plates, their bodies muscular and thick.  The tails had been allowed to grow out until they dragged against the ground; their manes were long and soft as well.  They were mostly dark chestnut, bordering on black.  She saw a particularly beautiful mare; she _was_ midnight black from nose to tail.  She was strong and proud and Jade thought that Kilbao would have sold its entire treasury to have her among their prize mares.  Yet at ten, Jade barely reached the mare's belly.  She barely reached the smallest horse's belly, whereas in Carthak, she had reached to withers of the smallest horse.

Jade stepped away from the heard and walked over to the edge of the river where trees began to lead into a great forest, once Kayandu said was very enchanted.  She sat at the edge of the river on a fallen log under the shade of a large tree.  She rested her elbows on her knees and her chin in her hands.

She had been in Solandia for almost two months.  True, she spent a month of that unconscious and unaware, but she was starting to think there _was_ no person that was going to take her home.  She liked Solandia, nearly unbearable humidity and a completely non-comprehensible language aside; but she really wanted to go home.  She really wanted to go to her father and she really anted to see Atune again, though she wondered if either was still alive.  And while Kayandu was fun to talk too, apparently he was the only person in Solandia that could speak her language.  She was getting a bit lonely.

She looked down at her dark blue clothing.  It had red stitching all over it, displaying various forms of flames and fire.  Despite the fact that the looseness of the outfit let air run into it, the humidity still required getting used to; she had taken to tying up her hair on the top of her head to avoid the slight sweat on her neck and shoulders from dampening it.  She wiggled the toes of her sandals, smiling at the oddity of them and noticing the tan lines that had formed from the straps.  She smiled.  She had only been awake for two weeks and only walking about for one, but she had definitely turned a few shades darker; it was near impossible not to here, the sun was _always _blazing.

She was startled out of her thinking by an interesting voice.  "It's about time you woke up."  Jade's head turned to look behind her.   At the top of her vision she could see something.  When she looked up to the point of nearly staring above her own head, she was surprised to see a girl crouched down on one of the upper tree branches, piercing eyes staring down at her.  Jade gaped.  The girl rolled her eyes and took a little hop off the branch.  Jade flinched as the girl fell to the ground, sure that she'd break something.  But she simply landed on her feet, her knees bending to absorb the impact more easily.  She straightened back up and continued to look Jade over.

Jade was speechless, the girl really should not have been able to jump that far and not break a leg.  But something told Jade this girl was anything but normal.

One side of the girl's lips turned up slightly in amusement and she placed her hands on her hips.  "Here I thought you'd wake up in a few days and you take your sweet time."  Jade was to shocked to say anything.  The words were richer than anything she'd ever heard before, drawn out and elongated to flow into each other, somewhat like Kayandu, but more so.  The girl's smirk turned into a soft smile.  "You look like your mother."

Jade snapped out of her gaze in surprise.  She stared at the girl in amazement and tried to get words out of her mouth.  Something pulled at the corner of her memory.  Something told her she should know who this was.  "Who are you?"  The girl's smirk grew wider.  And than it clicked.  She knew who she was before she even got an answer.  And the shock was ten fold.

The redheaded girl stuck out her ivory hand and silver nails.  "I'm Justice."

*****

A/N: Surprise!!!! And this is just the funnest ending to a chapter EVER!!!  Do I have you all jumping out of your seats yet???   I know lots of you were sad that I didn't have any firebirds in the second story.  And I promised it was purely strategic.  And it IS!! You're going to see a LOT of firebird stuff from here on out.  Happy?  I really want to know what you guys think about this….and I like to read everyone's foreshadowing…so don't hold back. I LIVE off all that.  REVIEW REVIEW please……


	3. To take you Away

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

Chapter 3: To Take you Back

By: Karigan Marie

*****

            Jade gazed at the hand being offered to her.  Justice's creamy white skin, contrasted sharply by the silver nails kept Jade's attention for a handful of moments before thought slowly crept itself back to Jade's befuddled mind.  Timidly, she reached out her own hand and placed it in Justice's waiting grip, gripping the flawless wrist in awe; the smoothness was remarkable.

            "You're Jade."

            Green eyes rose slowly in confusion to meet crystal blue ones.  Justice had crystal blue eyes that seemed almost lined in red.  Her face was paler than even Atune's, but the dusting of brownish freckles gave the pallor some contours.  Her hair, which was mostly blazing red - brighter than the lioness' - with streaks of gold, reached beyond her lower back in long straight silky strands.  Her eyebrows were set high and arched beautifully and her small pointy nose could only be described as sweet.  She looked to be around twelve or thirteen, physically at least, and stood a good half foot taller than Jade.  "Um…what?"

            Justice's smirk made itself known again.  "Jade.  You're Jade."

            "Oh…" Jade gave a mental shake and finally found words.  "Right.  I'm Jade.  And you're Justice."

            Red eyebrows arched up slightly in amusement.  "Right; we covered that."

            "Right. Sorry."

            Justice pulled her hand away gently.  "We should get going."  Jade swallowed.  That accent was nothing short of overwhelming.

            "Going?"

            "Right.  Going."  Justice turned back towards the forest and began a brisk walk.

            Jade, confused, quickly took a few steps after her, calling out.  "Wait.  Where are we going?"

            "Into the forest," Justice casually called out.

            "What, right now?"

            "Better now than later."

            "But…" Jade objected as she stepped over a log, "What about Kayandu and Anabaya? And, why are we going into the forest?"

            "They're fine. We're going into the forest because you can't stay in the village forever, can you?"

            "But…I didn't even get to thank them."

            Justice stopped and turned around quickly, a patient smile on her face.  "They knew that when I came to get you, you wouldn't have time to say good-bye.  Besides, you'll be back."  She turned back around and continued walking.

            Jade's eyes grew big and she stopped in her tracks.  "You…you brought me here? You're the one that found me at the cliff in Carthak?"

            "Yes. And no."

            Jade, utterly confused, picked up her brisk pace again.  "What does that mean?"

            Justice pushed aside a small tree and stepped by, never looking back.  "You asked two questions.  I answered each one."

            Jade scrunched her eyebrows in concentration.  Her stomach was starting to buzz slightly and her finger tips itched; she rubbed them against the silky material of her shirt.  "I'm a little confused," she admitted.

            "That's alright.  You'll figure it all out soon enough."

            They walked in silence for some time, Justice casually plunging forward, Jade trotting to keep up.  Thoughts were flying through Jade's head faster than she could keep up with them.  Every time she opened her mouth to ask something, it just wouldn't come out; her thoughts would run over and over themselves, never forming a complete sentence.  Finally, she got some coherent thought past her teeth.  "Justice?"

            "Yes?"  She leaned down to avoid a branch, Jade followed.

            "Why are we…why did we have to leave the village so quickly?"

            "I don't come out of the forest and out to the village too often.  It's a bit…" and here Jade noticed Justice paused to come up with a good word.  "…awkward."

            "Why?"

            "Because, I'm different than them."  And here, Jade detected a bit of amusement in Justice's words.

            And it was at this point that Jade focused on one thing in particular.  She thought for a few minutes, trying to remember her parents' stories and how they didn't line up to what she was seeing now.  She didn't really know how to bring up the subject.  "Um, Justice…"  She had to stop and rethink her words.  But no matter how she phrased it in her mind, it just didn't seem like it would come out sounding semi-intelligent any way she tried.  "You're…I mean, didn't….Aren't you _not_ supposed to be…you?"

            Justice looked over her shoulder with a frown marring her face.  "I beg your pardon?"

            "I mean…you're a firebird, right? Aren't you supposed to _be _one?"

            Justice smiled in understanding.  "Yes."

            Jade waited a few moments for further explanation.  When it seemed as if that's all she would get… "Right."  Justice shook her head in amusement.

            Justice stopped and turned around; her smile one of patience again.  "I am a firebird.  But I spent two years as a human," she rethought that statement, "…in human form.  Your parents helped me turn back into a firebird, yes.  But that kind of magic, it leaves an impression; a deep impression.  And, I still remember what it feels like to be in a human form, it's permanently etched into my mind.  So with whatever magic stayed with me from the original spell that kept me as a human, it just so happens I can shape-shift; back and forth.

            "So as far as why I'm in human form right now, you're human.  You wouldn't be able to understand me if I were in my Firebird form; at least, not right now.  Plus, you look the jumpy sort.  I didn't want to scare you away."

            Jade, who had been listening in awed amazement, suddenly scrunched her nose.  "I'm not afraid of anything."

            Justice smiled.  "Everyone is afraid of something, Jade.  You're no different."

            Jade frowned.  "Well…I'm not afraid of birds."

            Justice smirked.  "I never said you were."

            "So…," Jade continued, "you can go back and forth.  Were you a firebird or human when you found me?"

            "I didn't."  Justice turned around and kept on their long walk; the trees seemed to be getting sparser, but thicker and that buzzing in her stomach got more powerful, her eyes starting to itch now too.  She rubbed at them irritably.

            "But…than who did?"

            "It's a long story."  Justice placated.

            "We're on a long walk!"  Jade really wanted some answers.

            "We're almost there." The corner of Jade's eye caught a slight quick movement.  When she turned to look, she didn't see anything.  As soon as she turned back to follow Justice, something on the other side of her caught her attention; but again, nothing was there when she turned to look.  "What are you looking at?" Justice had ended up a bit far ahead and had stopped to wait.

            "I just…I thought I saw something."

            "Saw what?"

            "I don't know.  Just something.  But every time I take a closer look, it's gone."

            Justice looked around momentarily before taking a huge annoyed sigh.  She set her jaw and grimly growled in the back of her throat.  "A Piper.  Just ignore it."

            "Why?"

            "Because they're more trouble than they're worth.  Believe you me.  You don't want them near us."

            Jade looked curious, but decided to take the advice, even when she noticed something jolt across the corner of her vision again.  She stepped over large vines and roots while following the older girl.  She'd never seen such plants as she was now.  The thick vines ran along the bottom of the forest, the trees, and high above, through the top, hanging from branches, allowing small colorful animals to climb on them.  The buzzing in her stomach was growing and expanding into her chest, the slight vibration starting to warm considerably.  Jade wiped some sweat off her forehead.  They pushed through a sever patch of bushes as they climbed up a steep incline.  Jade couldn't see much in front of her, so she focused on that around her.

            The bush blossomed bright orange orchids, their petals soft and velvety.  Red spots near the center were dusted with yellow pollen as extremely _fat_ bees worked to get at the sweet nectar.  Jade had to stop and take deep breaths when the buzzing heat turned downright scorching inside her.  Her hands shook with energy and she could feel her knees wobbling.  "Justice…"

            "Just through here."  Justice urged.  She pushed through the bushes, disappearing behind the branches.

            Jade sucked in air as her ears started ringing madly, her eyes watering.  She stumbled forward and pushed through the bushes.

            It was like a riotous explosion inside her body.  Her vision turned brilliant green for endless seconds as she felt intense magic spill, not only out of her, but into her as well.

            Justice had turned around to wait for Jade to finally push through into the great forest.  She could feel the girl's magic beginning to cause havoc on her body and as much as Justice wanted to give her a few minutes to collect herself, she knew the feeling wouldn't go away until she got into the forest.  When Jade had pushed through the last of the new forest's bushes, Justice was surprised.  She hadn't expected so much energy to congregate in one single girl.

            Her magic had recognized the closeness of the great forest, and the great forest, in turn, had recognized her coming closer.  When she finally stepped on the powerful earth, both magic's had leapt together, clashing inside the poor girl's body.  All around her, dark green strips of light ripped through the trees and vines and roots towards the small figure, slamming in without mercy.  Her own brilliant green magic had done its own leaping; she could see wild strands of light rushing out all over.

            The girl's mouth opened in a silent scream, not of pain, but surprise.  She didn't expect _this_, Justice thought.  Finally, the light died out, and the forest was back to its _normal_ vibrant self and the poor girl looked as if she'd just run a marathon.

            Jade swallowed past the lump in her throat.  It had felt like nothing had ever felt before.  She had felt…like the Gods themselves had touched her mind, her heart, her very being.  Magic so intense, she could hardly take it.  When her vision cleared, she finally looked around.  Her jaw dropped in awe.

            The trees before her were the most amazing things she had ever seen.  They were taller than she could see, and so thick around, 15 people holding hands couldn't circle it.  Their bark was deep reddish brown, with no branches near the ground.  Huge vines swept across the tree line up high, the sun shining down, filtered through the small slits provided and lit the forest floor in eerie light.  A small stream ran through the trees, its crystal blue water shimmering as it flowed rapidly on its way.  She could hear countless birds calling all around her.  She could even see a few as they flew over head.  Their wings held so many different colors, she couldn't count.  The air here was thicker than even that of Solandia.  Every inch of breath she took was filled with droplets of water, clinging to her flushed face and body.

            And all through these wondrous sights and sounds, she could _feel_ the very essence of the forest, the very magic that oozed out of every single crack of wood, every vein of every leaf, every inch of every root.  It made something inside her come alive, her magic.  Whereas before, it had been firmly settled in her stomach, she felt it now in the very tip of her fingers, the very bridge of her nose, the arch of her back, felt every inch of her body hum in synchronized unison with that of the forest.  And even though her entire being was going mad with feeling, it was calming.

            She used to lie out in the grass when she was younger, letting her magic ease in and out of her, allowing her body to relax.  It had always been a small respite, but never really enough and she would seek more comfort by running her fingers through the blades of grass, hoping that the shaking in them would sees.  And now, she felt the same, felt the magic easing in and out of her with the air around her, felt her body relaxing, loosing the knots that had always been inside her body, all the while, making her buzz with life.  A single tear, sparkling with green, slid down her cheek.  Her mouth opened in a small sob of utter relief.  For the first time in her life, she didn't feel as if she'd explode from the inside out.  For the first time in her life, she felt… quiet.

*****

A/N:  This is a lovely chapter, isn't it?  I hope you like it…and remember.  Review!

Have fun!

Karigan Marie

Upcoming Chapters: 

4 - Here are the Facts (about you)

5 – To Feel Like This

6 – One Piper, Two Pips

7 – You? Syphon?

8 – The Visit


	4. Here are the facts about you

A/N:  **Ok.  This chapter is going to be inundated with information!  I know this is what a lot of you have been waiting for since I began my second story, Uncontrollable.  You don't get all the answers, but you certainly will get a ****LOT**** of them.   I suggest you read it carefully because it's just answer after answer after answer about Jade.  Enjoy.  And I BEG of you, review and let me know what you think!**

*********

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

By: Karigan Marie

Chapter: Here are the facts (about you)

*****

            Justice looked at the ten year old girl with interest.  Jade looked a bit overwhelmed at the moment.  With what was anyone's guess.  The girl's green eyes seemed a little brighter than before, her face a little more alive.  Justice smiled.  "It can be a bit much as I understand it; coming into the great forest for the first time is never easy, for anyone."

            Jade looked as if she'd just noticed the red heads presence.  It took a few moments, but recognition finally registered on the girl's face again.  "What happened?"

            Justice sighed.  "You have powerful magic.  So does the forest.  It's only natural that the two combined would spark so easily."

            "I don't understand."  Jade's eyes squinted.

            Justice sighed.  This really wasn't the place or time to get into the entire explanation of just **what** was going on.  "It's better if we wait.  We have a bit farther to go still."

            Jade crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow.  "Better now than later," was the petulant reply.  Justice felt the girl's sarcasm with a touch of annoyance.  'I wonder where she got that sharp tongue from. I don't remember either one of her parents being so acidic.'

            "You won't understand if I tell you know.  It will just confuse you more and make us both short-tempered."  With that, Justice turned to continue on through the trees.  The walking was much easier this time.  The trees, while incredibly large, held wide gaps around them, allowing for more direct pathways through the forest.  There was foliage, naturally, but none as dense as with the newer forest.  Justice heard the reluctant footsteps of the following girl.

            She was relieved when Jade refrained from asking any more questions on their long walk, though she could feel the girl's eyes boring holes into the back of her head.  It was nearly dusk when Justice finally stopped.  She turned around to notice Jade tapping her foot.

            "I think I've been patient enough," was the short clipped statement.  "I want answers.  Now."

            Justice shrugged, crossed her arms over her chest and made a little movement with her head to indicate that Jade was to walk closer.  Jade stepped up close with impatience.  "Well?"

            Justice nearly laughed at the girl's utter inability to pay attention to her surroundings.  It wasn't as if anyone was being _quiet_.  Red eyes rose slowly, indicating that Jade should look skyward as well.  'At least she's quick to catch on,' Justice thought as piercing green eyes slowly and carefully rose to the sky.

            Up in the trees, far above their heads, the sun bounced off bright red forms, all just far enough away so that Jade had to scrunch her eyes to see.  The girl gasped as one by one the bright red forms fell from the sky, bursting into flames of blue, yellow, reds, and gold.  She backed up against a tree, pressing herself up against it as the balls of fire came closer.  Justice smirked.

            Within seconds, Justice's colony swooped in for a landing.  Some, not so gracefully, Justice noticed with a wince, their talons were not made for the flat earth.  Justice felt the earth under her feet shift slightly.  Looking at Jade in alarm, she noticed the girl was shaking in fear.  Quickly, Justice walked over to her.  "Jade.  Calm down.  Don't be afraid."

            The girl was shaking furiously, her eyes trained on several six feet tall firebirds.  "Jus...I…"

            Justice leaned in close.  "You have to calm down, Jade.  Your magic is much more sensitive here, you **have** to calm down."  The words seem to startle the girl out of her fear.  She took several breaths and swallowed the panic admirably.  "They won't hurt you, silly girl," Justice chastised.  "This is my colony."

            Jade nodded.  A small hand came up to give the tinniest of waves.  "Umm, hello."

            Justice smirked when the firebirds squawked their hello's and Jade flinched back.  "They're just saying hello back."

            Jade scrunched her nose.  "How am I supposed to know that?"

            "Well, if you'd just listen, you'd be able to understand them.  Honestly, I don't really think me playing translator is time conducive."

            Jade flushed in embarrassment, and Justice noticed, with some amusement, that the vanilla orchids that bloomed not ten feet away from where Jade stood, blushed red themselves.  This would certainly be interesting.  "I don't have wild magic.  I can't speak with animals."  
            Justice rolled her eyes.  What **had **they been telling the girl way up north? "First of all," Justice pointed out.  "You **do** have Wild Magic, just not the kind they're used too up north."  When she noticed the questions shooting through the girl's green eyes, Justice quickly added, "…but we'll get to that later."  She sighed.  This would be a very long night.  "Second.  Firebirds can understand and be understood by the flora.  And, seeing as you're a third flora, you should have no problem understanding the same as the regular flora."

            Jade's face was one of open shock.  "I'm…I'm a third what?"

            "Third flora," Justice repeated.  "Didn't your parents ever tell you about the flora magic getting into your mother's body while she was pregnant with you?"

            "Well yes…" the girl stumbled.  "But…I don't know…how am I quarter flora?"

            Justice sighed.  "It didn't just heal your mother…it healed you as well.  Your mother was barren, Jade.  She never would have been able to carry you to term by herself.  Unfortunately, foxglove is a powerful poison, powerful enough to cause permanent damage to your mother's womb.  Even if your mother hadn't been hurt that day, she would have miscarried you, so the flora informs me.  From what I understand, you were very weak in there, and they added to you, made you strong, filled in the gaps with itself."

            Justice sighed.  This is where it got complicated.  Her mother's words of encouragement gave her the strength to keep on.  "Had your mother never been poisoned by foxglove, you could have been born normally; you would have been born with normal wild magic; as your mother was born with it.  You would have been half your father, half your mother.  But your not.  You're made up of three different entities now; your mother, your father …and…the flora.  It makes for an odd combination; and odd but _extremely_ powerful one.  You have your mother's wild magic, but your flora makes it different."

            Jade listened in rapt attention.  "Going back to the first point," Justice backtracked.  "If you just listen, you'll be able to hear not only the flora, but firebirds as well."  Jade nodded slowly, comprehension dawning.  "Well…" Justice urged.  "No time like the present to start."

            Jade nodded and chewed on the side of her lip in concentration.  She closed her eyes and Justice scrunched her nose.  What was the girl doing? Trying to _think_ the words? "You aren't listening." Justice commented after a few moments.

            Jade's eyes opened in frustration, the tree trunks around her groaning slightly along with her.  "I'm trying.  I'm opening my mind, just like I've always done.  I'm trying to use my mind.  I am!"

            Justice looked at the girl as if she'd grown another head.  "Why do you have to think about it so hard?  All you have to do is _listen_."

            Jade sighed.  "I don't know _how_?"

            Justice stepped up to the girl, reached up and took both tan ears in her hands, pulling them lightly for emphasis.  "With **these**, you silly girl!"

            She looked confused.  "You mean, like I listen to you.  Just…my ears? Not with my mind?"

            Justice shook her head.  "What does your thoughts, other then processing the information, have to do with your hearing?  If you want to hear us, or the flora, use your ears!"

            She saw the girl look around nervously, as if the idea had never occurred to her.  Finally she sighed and let her shoulders slump.  She focused on sounds around her for a few moments, listening quietly.  She took a deep breath, as if to give up when she jumped back suddenly in stunned surprise, her eyes nearly coming out of her head.

*****

            She'd just about given up on the idea of just listening with her ears instead of her mind for once, something she'd been taught since birth not to do in concerning magic, when she heard various voices speaking suddenly; the booming voices startled her so badly, she felt her heart pick up a notch or two.

            Leaning back against the tree, she jumped back up when it made a comment about her short height.  She swung her face around to another tree who had been discussing the ten year itch it had suffered through a century ago.  Under her, the small grass shoots were bickering among themselves about a rather stubborn bird who would not give up its quest for a worm that had burrowed itself among them.  Jade looked up to the voices coming from the firebirds.  They were speaking quietly among themselves, curious about the small human girl that was now their charge.  There were softer voices, a patch of wild scurry violets chatted softly with the thorn bush about the lovely rays of sun they had been enjoying since that mean old red wood died a few weeks back, he wouldn't be missed.  Vanilla orchids, their soft white pedals having the tiniest residue of a blush still staining them, whispered about how proud they were that she was their daughter more than anyone else's.  Jade stared at them in surprise.

            "Parents are always boasting about their children," a voice cued softly behind her.  Jade turned her head to come face to face with a firebird.  She swallowed uneasily.

            "I'm sorry?"  The red firebird with brick red eyes motioned her head to indicate the vanilla orchid bush.  "What do you mean? What do **they** mean?"

            "Flora magic is connected.  All flora is one, but they have their own minds, as any individual has."  The firebirds soft words soothed Jade's nerves.  "And the flora that saved yours and your mother's life that day was a vanilla orchid bush.  You are a third flora, child.  But more specifically, you are a third vanilla orchid."

            Jade blinked.  "Are you serious?"

            "Very," was the soft reply.  Jade swallowed and looked at the soft white orchids.  She had considerable trouble trying to think of the pretty plant as part of herself.  The nice firebird seemed to know what she was thinking without mention.  "You might have noticed a few traits that you inherited from them.  Perhaps some that are not from your parents.  Vanilla orchids are extremely shy, to the point of vexing many.  They hide their thoughts often, are very giving naturally, which explains why they were first to step up to the demand of healing you, and they can be very stubborn, refusing to change with time."

            Jade winced.  Some of those traits sounded all too familiar.  She sighed and scratched her head, just trying to take it all in.  Dark was settling in the great forest and Jade found herself wondering where she would sleep tonight, they were really quite far away from Solandia.  But this was her opportunity, and she was not going to give it up.  She looked at the firebird that had spoken to her and set her jaw.  "I want to know how I got here?" she asked stubbornly.  "I want to know why I'm so far away from home.  And I want to know how I get back."  She was working herself up, feeling her face flush with the heat of anger; she felt a painful prick on her hands, and stared after the short tempered thorn bush that scolded her on her lack of respect for elders.  'You're making the saplings loose their root hold!' it chastised.  'Control yourself.'

            She blushed furiously, and this time, she too noticed the vanilla orchids white velvet petals turn red along with her.  Justice stepped up and put a hand on her shoulder.  "Don't make yourself uneasy, Jade.  We didn't bring you here to make you so nervous.  It's understandable that you feel strongly right now. Natural.  But one thing you _must_ learn is to control your emotions.  They can have powerful repercussions if you're not careful.  On the other hand, when you're older, maybe you can use them to your advantage.  But that day is far away; and for now, it's best you learn the value of calmness.

            Jade chewed on her bottom lip as she listened to the girl.  That accent really was rather odd.  Pretty, but odd.  She could hear it in the other birds as well, and it had given her cause to concern she'd miss a few of the more flowing words that they spoke.  She took a deep breath.  "Could you please tell me," she implored, "what is going on?"

            A mighty firebird stepped closer, his looming height and strength evident in his every move.  He stared at her with piercing gold eyes.  "I am Hunter, child.  Lead bird in this colony."  Jade leaned back gratefully against a redwood that offered her comfort.  "The flora came to us one day, asked us for assistance.  They told us their daughter was in danger, but they could not help her, their laws cannot be broken so easily." He looked momentarily over at the vanilla bush.  "Though some are more likely to break those rules than others."  Jade looked over and gawked when the vanilla bush flushed again, pure red, all by itself.  She turned back to Hunter.

            "We ourselves would not have stepped up to the challenge on a normal basis.  We do not leave the great forest unless absolutely necessary.  In fact, we all said no.  All accept one."  Jade looked over at Justice, who shook her head in denial.  She looked around and her eyes landed on the brick eyed female again.  She seemed to smile at her, almost.

            She stepped up and softly admitted her part.  "I was the one to fly north, child.  I flew as quickly as possible; when I got there, you had just fallen from a cliff in the night.  I could hear your fear from the sky as you fell.  I used all my magic to reach you before you hit the bottom.  Fortunately, I caught you before you hit the rocks below, though you had hit a few rocks on the way down.  You would not wake up.  So I placed you upon my back and brought you with me, brought you here.  Without my magic, which I could not use with you on me, our journey back south lasted near one moon cycle."

            Jade flinched.  A month.  A trip south lasted a month.  On a bird, a direct flight with nothing to detour them took a month.  She felt a bit ill.  How far south _exactly_ was she? Birds flew relatively quickly if they wanted, and she had no doubt these firebirds could be quick, even without magic.  A trip north on foot could take, near half a year at least!  She was so **far** from home!

            "I brought you here.  To the forest, in hopes the flora would heal you.  But you were still alive; and sadly, the told me they could not heal again, that the law had already been broken once for you, and could not be again.  I was quite vexed with them at that point.  That is when my daughter mentioned the village."  Jade turned to Justice.  Daughter, huh?

            Justice smiled.  "Seeing as I can shaft shift, I can go to the village if I please.  So I did.  I asked the head shaman to look after you while you healed and promised to be back for you once you were out of danger."  She grinned.  "He agreed happily."

            Jade fidgeted with her hands, thinking hard.  It had taken a month to get down here.  Then, a month or her to wake up.  That was two months she had been completely unconscious.  She must have been very injured, though she wondered if she would have been half that bad if the poor firebird had known any human healing and not had to have taken her down as she was for a month without care.  Two months.  But then, she had been in bed for two weeks after that.  And it had been two weeks more before Justice had come earlier today.  Three months.  Three months.  It had been April when the rebels attacked, only a few weeks after her tenth birthday.  So…it was near the end of July now.  Jade had to sit down on the ground at the thought.  She had missed most of summer.  She let out a shaky breath.  Her father probably thought her dead by now.  "But why bring me here? You cold have taken me to any village in Carthak and they would have taken care of me," she breathed in question.

            Justice sat next to her with a sad frown.  "I asked a great favor when I asked the flora to heal your mother almost eleven years ago.  I owe them just as big a favor.  And they asked me to bring you here."

            "Why didn't you come and get me, then?" Jade asked.

            Justice smiled.  "I'm still kind of little.  I can't really carry you to well, not that far anyways.  Besides, my mother was willing to go and get you."

            "Why?" She hadn't meant to ask that so desperately.

            Justice's mother spoke up softly.  "I do not owe a dept to the flora, child.  But I do owe a dept to your mother.  And to her, I repay that dept."  Lorelei sighed softly, ruffling her feathers.  She had never imagined she would ever be able to repay the wild mage for saving her child.  But the opportunity had presented itself, and she had eagerly taken it.  Now, she would watch over the small human hatchling, fulfilling the same kindness the woman had given to Justice.

            Jade shivered in apprehension.  "Why would the flora bring me here?"

            Justice swallowed uneasily and looked at her pale hands.  "They thought it best that you start to learn control over your magic.  No one up north knows anything about it.  You can't learn from them."  She swung her hand in the general direction of Jade, motioning to her.  "I mean, just look at simple hearing.  You should have been able to hear the flora and us since you were five or six.  But you can't.  That in itself says a lot.  They can't teach you up there."

            Jade scrunched her eyes.  "So, the flora wants to what? Give me a few lessons?"

            Justice took a deep breath.  Quietly, she pushed on.  "More than a few."

            Jade swallowed.  "How long?"

            Justice looked at her sadly.  "It is going to take you most of your life to learn to control this magic, Jade.  It will take years to just get out the absolute necessities.  Until that time, you are to stay here, under my care, repayment for that favor so long ago, and the flora's tutelage."

            Wide green eyes looked frightened.  "Years?"  She squeaked.  "How many years?"

            Justice shrugged.  "Seven, eight, maybe nine years." a small breath.  "…maybe more."

            The little shoots screamed in protest as green light pulsed out of Jade's hands, panic in the young girl's eyes.  She shook her head slowly.  "I can't do that." She whispered fiercely.  "I can't stay here that long.  I won't."  She stood up and shaky legs and began to walk back the way she came.  "That's too long.  And I'm too far away from home."

            Justice jumped up and followed her, leaving the other firebirds behind.  "Jade! You _must_ learn control."

            "I'll learn at home.  With my father.  He'll teach me," she reasoned.

            "He _can't_, Jade! How is going to teach you about something he has no idea about?"

            Jade felt hot tears sting her eyes.  She took a deep breath and pushed forward through some trees.  "I'll figure it out."

            "You're going to _kill_ someone with that magic of yours, Jade!"  Jade's feet stopped abruptly, the words nearly ripping out her insides.  Justice's quite voice filled her ears.  "I don't want to be cruel.  But you know it to be true.  You have magic that is _too_ powerful to ignore.  You have to learn to use it or you're going to cause a lot of pain."

            A few seconds of silence.  "It's your choice, Jade.  In the end, it always is.  If you want to go home, you can.  But you won't ever get this opportunity again.  If you go home now, you'll never learn to control it.  You'll never have the ease of knowing that you're not dangerous.  And you are, Jade.  You're dangerous without the proper training.  I know staying means you'll be giving up the life you knew.  Giving up most of the plans you had for the near future.  But it's not the end, Jade.  It's not.  It's a beginning."

            Jade lowered herself to the forest floor, rubbing the ground with her bare hand.  "Why can't they teach me up north, why can't I just tell them how? You could tell me, and I could practice on my own," she tried desperately.

            Justice sat next to her.  "Because even we don't know it all, Jade.  You have wild magic.  And you have the flora magic.  Two in one.  That is… _rare_.  Truthfully, it's never happened before, and will probably never happen again.  You've been taught from the beginning to use your mind to call up your magic, because that's what the Gift and Wild Magic require.  But flora magic is much older, much more primal.  It takes a certain amount of thinking, yes.  But, the magic isn't a thought.  It's you.  It's a part of your body, as much a part as your legs, or your arms.  And just like them, it's controlled by you mind ultimately.  But it requires your body to complete.  It requires your own energy, your own self.  This is why your emotions are so dangerous."

            Jade looked over.  "I don't understand."

            Justice's gold silk covered legs shifted.  "You have to call up your magic.  Not with your mind, but with your body.  You can't just stand there and magic will happen.  It needs to get out through your body.  A lot of different options there, really.  Your body has to respond, has to let energy out.  Words for example.  Well, not necessarily words, but your breath.  It requires you to use your lungs, to exhale.  That action, the exhaling is a release of the magic.  If you snap your fingers.  If you clap your hands.  Anything that takes effort on your body is how your magic leaves your body.  Do you understand?"

            Jade's eyes scrunched.  "I think so.  But then, wouldn't my magic be getting out at all times.  Since I'm always doing something…like walking, or …breathing!"

            Justice smiled.  "Yes, if you didn't have control of your actions.  But you do them deliberately, or steadily.  They are controlled.  So your magic rarely gets out by mere every day activities."

            A few moments of easy silence before Jade ventured a soft question.  "Can they get out through my emotions?"

            Justice's lift twitched in consideration.  "Not _exactly_.  Your emotions are really only thoughts.  So having emotions doesn't release your magic.  But having physical responses to those emotions…"

            Realization dawned on Jade.  "…if I scream in anger, or cry from sadness, or shake in fear…"

            Justice nodded.  "…or jump in surprise, or laugh with happiness.  Emotions are often spur of the moment and rarely really controlled.  They're quick to appear and your bodily response is quick and powerful.  Having emotions doesn't let out the magic.  But it certainly provides a means for it to get out.  And since emotions are powerful and, not always controllable, neither is the magic that gets let loose."

            "So that means I have to…?"

            "Well, it means that one of the things you have to learn is serenity and poise."  Justice smiled cutely at that.  More seriously, she added.  "It means that you have to think before you scream or throw something in anger, before you start shaking in panic…"

            "…before I laugh in happiness?" Jade asked with hurt eyes.

            Justice sighed sadly.  "Until you learn to control your magic?  Yes."

            "Even if I control my emotions, I still won't have control over the magic?"

            "You can't control your magic by suppressing your feelings, Jade.  If that were the case, than you'd be cold and unfeeling and have great power.  The control has to come from you.  You have to make the conscience effort to control it."

            "I've tried!"

            "It takes time, and practice.  And even then it's not enough.  You have to find it in yourself.  It's not just going to fall into your lap."

            Jade sighed, running her hands along the dirt forest ground, listening to the small roots underneath snooze in everlasting slumber.  "My father doesn't know where I am."

            Justice nodded.  "Your parents won't know.  And I feel bad having to do this to them.  I liked your father very much. And your mother was very nice to me, she's a nice woman."

            Jade looked over at the girl.  "Justice…" Red eyes rose from the ground to meet her own.  "My mother…she died two years ago.  She walks with the Dark Lord now."

            Sky blue eyes turned icy in shock and surprise.  "What?"

            Jade pulled up her knees and settled her head on her knees.  "Two years ago, the palace was attacked by rebels.  My mother was killed that night."

            Justice stared into thin air in thought.  She swallowed slowly.  "I'm so sorry to hear that."  She looked over at Jade again.  "Your father?"

            Jade sighed.  "He's fine.  I think.  He was in Tortall fighting the war last I heard."

            Justice seemed confused.  "What war?"

            Jade sat up a bit.  "Carthak and Tortall are at war with Scanra and Serain.  They've been fighting for almost six months, now.  And last I heard, both Tortall and Carthak had closed their borders."

            "I'm sorry to hear that."

            "Those horrible Rebels make it worse.  I wouldn't have been in danger if those horrid men had left us alone."

            "Rebels?"  Justice's voice sounded strained.

            "They're some kind of rebellion army in Carthak.  They want the Emperors throne," Jade explained.

            Justice began to shake noticeable.  "I see."

            Jade scratched a pattern into the earth.  I suppose the Emperor has closed the Southern Carthaki borders as well."

            "It makes sense," Justice replied.

            Jade sighed sadly.  "So if I wanted to go North, I wouldn't be able to cross the border, not without a firebirds help."

            "None of them would take you; they don't like leaving the forest.  Hunter was reluctant enough to let my mother go.  If you really wanted, I'd take you, hunter seems to think I'm a bit different.  But you're kind of heavy.  I won't be able to carry you for a few more years at least."  Jade nodded, feeling tears begin to sting her eyes.  She got up suddenly, surprising Justice.  "Where are you going?"

            "I need to think," was the only reply Jade gave.  Jade walked into the night, Justice sighed softly.

*****


	5. Like This

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

By: Karigan Marie

Chapter: Like This

*****

~~~~~

            She was standing in a grand field, the wind blowing her long black curls, weighed down by their length, across her face.  She reached up and dragged an errant strand back and tucked it behind one ear.  The wind, which carried the sent of snow from the north still had the last traces of fall warmth.  The long flat plains reached for miles, purple and blue violets turning a soft red, preparing for their winter slumber; it had always felt like a part of her was falling into a peaceful sleep whenever winter came around.  She'd nearly forgotten that feeling after so many years in a place where the heat of summer never seemed to fade away.

~~~~~

            She turned her face to see black brown eyes, hard and stale, looking at her with a twinkle of hidden knowledge, as if he knew what it was she was thinking.  He'd managed to take everything else away, now he was taking away her very self.  How was she supposed to fight this, fight him?

            But then they changed.  They grew a little rounder, a little softer.  And the mud brown became almost chocolate; and she knew this man was different.  _Goddess_, what those eyes could do to her.  She didn't think it right that even when he looked at her with such utter disappointment, she could feel the air leave her lungs.  This couldn't possibly be safe.

~~~~~

            She jumped then.  Why she willingly jumped was beyond her own reason, seeing as she had promised to never even go near that lake again.  Water surrounded her, and she wondered if the air would rip at her lungs the way it did the last time.  

~~~~~

            She was five again, standing in the middle of an all out stampede of people.  She looked around; saw roots bending to her will.  She had the urge to make them dance for her.  The overwhelming scream from the people running around her made her think they didn't think the idea as beautiful as her.  She walked calmly through the crowd, eerily being missed by all the scrambling people as she walked in a slow steady walk to a destroyed market stand.

            She stepped over broken wood and glass.  She squatted down.  She reached down with little hands and picked up a mirror that had been cracked in the madness.  She picked up the pretty thing with steady hands, as if the screaming and yelling all around her didn't even enter her mind.  She turned the mirror over, looking into the glass.  She expected to see young green eyes and a child's face.

            When she finally peered into the mirror, she noted she wasn't surprised that she saw an older face, that of a young woman.  Brilliant green eyes set on tanned skin on a face that years had chiseled all signs of her girlhood away; black eyelashes and eyebrows contrasting interestingly.

            She heard her name being called.  She looked up slowly.  Just in front of her was her mother, standing with a look of utter shock on her face.

            'Jade'.  The one world slipped out of her mother's mouth softly.

            Jade wanted to answer, wanted to ask her so many things.  There were so many questions.  But she had to ask one first, had to find out. 'Did you go away because of me?'

            The question hung in the air, the clouds beginning to darken.  Her mother's eyes, those that had been so loving and caring, so accepting, now held tears of disappointments, of shame.  And the utter calm that had been Jade started to crumble.  Confusion, uncertainty, doubt, all these feelings began to creep up to her, making her wonder if she really _had _done something that couldn't be fixed.  Her mother's eyes became hard and angry, became loathing; pink lips parted to speak.  'What have you done?' Thunder and lightning cracked around her.

            What _had_ she done? Jade looked back down, looked back at the mirror.  She was met by the sight of the same womanly face, with only two differences.  Her eyes were glowing brilliantly, almost too much.  And, there was hot, thick, gooey blood splattered across her face, the warmth of it seeping into her very being.

            And for just a second she found herself, her older self, taller and stronger, swinging with all her might, feeling the power in her explode with her anger.  The crack that sounded was almost drowned out by the sheer force of blood that splattered on her face.

            And she turned towards the mirror, the wooden board falling from her bloody fingers.  And in the body length mirror inside the tent, she could see herself, graceful and healthy body, complete with womanly curves, covered in blood.  And she was resigned, because this was what she was.  The lightning flashed and scorched the earth around her.  Everything she touched died.

~~~~~

*****

            She jerked awake, startling various bushes with a squirt of magic.  She sat up and rubbed at her dry eyes, chasing away the last traces of fitful sleep.  She looked around then, trying to orient herself.  Amazingly large and tall trees, lively bushes and roots; ah, right.

            She'd fully intended to spend the majority of the night contemplating her situation.  But once she had found a reasonably soft area to lie down and think, her body, still weak from so many months of illness, had collapsed into slumber almost immediately.  She dreamed often, and her dreams were always intense and complicated, but she had grown used to them, to the confusion she always woke up too.

            It was still early, the sun not even out yet; just the barest trace of early morning blue light shinning through the trees.  Jade rested on her back, her hands coming up to support her head as she relaxed a little.  She just starred for a few minutes up into the canopy, wondering about what she had been told.  It wasn't long before the soft chatter of a nearby berry bush called her attention.  She listened silently as the small bush rustled on about this and that.  Jade listened to each word, wondering why she had never heard it before.  They spoke just like everything else.  She thought so; at least, until she listened just a little more carefully.

            There weren't any actual words coming from the little bush, or any other plant for that matter, they were little sounds.  Sounds that they had always made, sounds that Jade had _always _heard, just never bothered to really listen too.  They rustled, they scraped, and they twitched and creaked.  They tapped, cracked and even whistled with the wind on occasion.  And it startled Jade to realize that each one of those little sounds was a word, a meaning.  Every time the little weeds rustled and crunched, Jade could hear meaning behind it, could listen to them as they conversed.  It was utterly amazing.  They didn't actually _talk_, but she could hear them, could understand them.

            She thought maybe that was why she could also understand the firebirds.  They're clicks and whistles, their squawks and screeches, all made sense, all fit into her mind so easily.  She sighed.  How odd was it that she never realized this little talent of hers before.

            But when she thought about it, she had understood it before.  The night she ran into the woods with Ani; when she had given up on running any further, thought her legs couldn't take another step.  She had heard them then.  But maybe the desperate situation had pushed her into hearing them, maybe she really needed help then, and the flora had come to her aid, again.

            She watched the sky lighten just the slightest bit, could see the edge of the little clearing she had been laying in.  Her mind wandered to more undesirable places.  She was stuck, stuck here.  The thought made her stomach hurt.  She wanted to go home, desperately.  She missed her father so much she didn't think she'd survive another month, let alone several years.  She rolled to her side, tucking her head in the crook of her elbow.  Goddess, he must think her dead by now.  She wondered if he could survive thinking he'd lost her as well as her mother.  She felt her eyes sting and scrunched her eyes tightly to clear away the moistness.

            She ran her fingers over the soft grass and moss, feeling some of her tension escape, reminding her that the plants around here had something extra special about them.  She closed her eyes and concentrated on the energy that had always been firmly rooted at the bottom of her stomach.  But instead of it being so centralized, she found that the feeling had spread throughout her entire being.  She could feel the magic in her fingertips, her eyes, her elbows; she could feel the magic in her very hair.  But it wasn't too much, not like before.  The knot that had formed in her stomach over the years had disappeared, the tension drained away.  It was as if the sheer amount of magic that had been concentrated to the one little location had finally spread itself out to her entire body, evenly distributing itself, so that no part of her felt as if it carried too much.  She smiled.  She'd never felt like this before.  She'd never felt so unstressed, so peaceful, so steady; she had never felt this powerful.

            The idea frightened her as much as it made her happy.  She no longer had to feel as if she'd collapse in upon herself.  But now she had this power, and she didn't know how to wield it.  She didn't know how to control one single ounce of it.  The image of a man lying dead with his head splattered open rushed her mind.  She had managed to do that before.  Now, with the increase in power she just _knew_ was happening inside her, she wondered how much worse she could do now.

            The thought was enough make her choose without doubt.  She'd be lonely, she'd be tired, and she'd be isolated for years.  She'd be disconnected from the world she knew, certainly believed dead by everyone.  But she'd learn at least _some_ control, if not complete.  And maybe, with just a _little_ control, she'd be able to avoid market place riots and murder from now on.  She'd do anything to keep a lid on her magic.  Including stay, for however long it took.

*****

            The young girl sat at her desk, working furiously, candlelight shimmering off the white parchment.  She lifted the quill off her sheet to inspect her work and grimaced.  No, that wasn't right.  She tucked a long piece of blonde hair behind her ear, chewing on the corner of her lip, looking the numbers over and over until she found the problem.  Dipping her quill in the ink, she scratched out the mathematical error and continued on, determined to master these equations by the end of the night.

            She was determined to finish school by the end of the year.  She would finish by the time she was 14 at least, but by the end of the year was far better.  She'd be as good as any mathematical scholar at the palace and become a rider.  She'd petition for early acceptance, use her excellent academic record to prove she could not only handle rigorous amounts of work and stress, but be a valuable member of the Riders, whose mathematical talent could be used in so many different ways.  She'd be a Queen's Rider, she'd train, she'd go into battle, she'd fight for her king and her kingdom; and she'd fight in the memory of Jade.  She'd push back the rebel filth that had invaded Tortall and show them her fury.  Amena Cassidy would avenge Jade, would avenge all her countrymen and women who had been slaughtered by the filth.

*****

            Numair Salmalin lifted his traveling pack onto his gentle gelding, sighing in wariness.  The heat was starting to get on his nerves.  Kitten stuck her head out of one of the baskets, her pale blue skin almost completely healed over.  The burn scars had formed, trailing down the entire length of her neck, but they grew smaller with each passing day, she'd probably be free of any burn scars by the end of the year.  He ran a dirty hand through his hair, wondering when he had grown so accustomed to his constant state of filth.  He heard foot steps crunching towards him and he looked over his shoulder.  Eleni stopped behind him and waited.

            "What is it, Eleni?"

            She frowned.  "Troops from Serain have crossed the Eastern River."  She reached up casually and patted Kitten on the head.

            "We suspected as much yesterday."

            Her frowned turned into a scowl.  "But we didn't think they would push east, we thought they'd go south, try and cut us in half."

            Numair thought about that for a moment, feeling his constant migraine flare a bit.  "Have a messenger ride to Hoob, that's where Captain Lenex is, he'll be able to head them off before us."

            He turned around then, looking at her.  The 23 year old girl, no, woman, looked as tired as he.  Her hazel eyes had dulled out to an almost gray and her pale complexion was thin and showed the beginnings of crow's feet along her eyes.  Her long dirty blonde hair, which reached down to the bottom of her back, was braided, but the slight curl in each strand pulled some locks free, giving her a very wild appearance.  He sighed.  Someone so young shouldn't look so _old_.  He felt slightly guilty that he hadn't looked after her better like he'd promised Alanna.  The woman that stood before him was as stubborn as her mother as regards her own personal health.  He sighed.  "When was the last time you ate, Eleni?"

            She seemed startled, her hand freezing its petting movements on Kittens muzzle.  "I'm sorry?"

            "When was the last time you had something substantial to eat, grasshopper?"  He said it a bit sternly, but her nickname softened it.  Only those who'd known her since childhood, who knew she used to try and jump from very high locations just to see how far she could go called her that.

            Her eyes unfocused in thought for a moment, giving Numair all the answer he needed.  "You need to take better care of yourself," he turned to strap on another pack.  "You look like death."

            Her eyes went wide.  "Since when are you my father?"  She jumped even before Numair could freeze at her words.  "I'm sorry," she sputtered.  "Numair, please, I didn't mean…"

            "Don't worry about it," he dismissed harshly.  "Just go get something to eat before we move out."  He didn't wait for the nod she gave to head back to his mostly broken down tent.

            Eleni grimaced and cursed as she kicked the ground.  "Can't keep your mouth shut for two _seconds_!" she scolded herself.  Kitten chortled sadly.  

*****

            The shouts announcing a messenger brought him out of his officer's tent.  Jayson pushed aside the cloth and stepped out into the blazing son in his black and gold regimentals.  He never did see the reason why the royal Legionnaires had chosen _black_ as their colors.  Other than being royal colors, Jayson saw no point in them.  It was just too _hot_ to have to wear them.  He scratched his newly cut short hair and stepped out into the heat.

            The messenger jumped off his horse's back and strode towards him.  "Message for the commanding officer of this Legionnaire chapter."

            Jayson nodded and reached for the general message.  It wasn't directed towards him in particular, but to all officers.  This meant, it announced a major change in situation.  The man bowed respectfully and was given water.  Jayson tore open the royal seal and unfolded the message.  His eyes read quickly and precisely.  He lifted his eyes from the message to meet with those of his Lieutenants.  They looked worried and eager to hear the news.  Jayson sighed.  He never liked to give such news, but it was his duty.  He cleared his throat.  In a soft sad voice he announced, "Tyra has fallen."

            His Lieutenants shifted uncomfortably and mumbled among themselves.  "His majesty informs us that the Empress of Tyra has been exiled to Tortall, where their majesties, King Jonathan and Queen Thayet have given her safe refuge."  He continued on.  "Serain now has direct access to Tortall, and direct ports into Carthak."  A few curses were mumbled.  "All borders are now completely closed until further notice, only those with special access will be permitted to cross.  Border-hopping is to be severely punished.  Anyone who tries shall be imprisoned."

            He sighed and turned around, heading back to his tent, leaving his men to digest the information.  He threw himself onto his cot, face down.  Not even 19 and he was watching his world fall to pieces around him, the thought was devastating.  He didn't think they could take anymore blows.  He sighed in frustration.

            Four months ago he had had to do the hardest thing he'd ever had to do in his life.  He'd had to tell a man his only daughter had fallen to her death.  That after days of fear and loneliness, she had fallen over a cliff to die, what must have been, a painful death.  He clenched his eyes, trying to rid himself of the image of bright green eyes.

            He lifted himself up, reaching for a book like collection of large pieces of paper.  He flipped through them idly.  The first piece was a charcoal drawing of an old man sitting in front of a plastered stone building, his old knobby legs set wide apart.  His face was serious but relaxed and an old walking stick was being gripped tightly in his hands.

            He turned to the next drawing.  It was of one of his men, stooped down in front of a small child who'd been lost.  The corner of Jayson's lip twitched.  That child had nearly scratched his man's eyes out when they'd first found him.  He turned again, this time to a drawing of several of his men, gathered around a table in an inn gambling and drinking away in merriment.  The next picture was of the Emperor, proud and strong, standing atop a great stairwell, looking down upon several important papers.

            He flipped through several more, a dogfight that he'd witnessed in Cebrion, a hand-maiden frantically fixing a ladies hair-do before her entrance into the court, a chess board he'd admired once, a small girl knee deep in mud near a running river, strong healthy boys struggling in a practice dual during training.  Each drawn in dark charcoal, their lines thick and heavy but retaining a thoughtful quality.  They weren't masterpieces by any stretch of the imagination, but they were beautiful in their realistic qualities, their captured moments.  Small smiles captured in the colorless eyes, grace in the movements frozen in time.

            It was his secret talent.  Well, not very secret.  Most his men knew he would draw random pictures, often times catching him working away while the rest of them drank and sang ballads.  They thought it funny and odd, but they wouldn't comment upon it, considering his status.  And those who had been fortunate enough to catch a glimpse at his sketches as he worked simply raised eyebrows in quiet amazement and went on their way.  He'd done it since he was young.  They weren't necessarily anything important to him.  He drew them when he felt an urge.  Sometimes they were of things that just caught his attention, like the dogfights or chess set, and sometimes they were moments that stuck in his memory, like that of one of his men and the young lost child.

            He pulled out a piece of parchment and opened the small box with various pieces of black coal in it.  He began whisking lines across the paper, letting them stretch just like in his memory.  This wasn't to be like most his pictures, moments or objects.  He hadn't really intended for it to come out so focused.  Slowly, his hand began to form two almost eyes, making sure to show the sharp contrast between dark black eyelashes and eyebrows with light eyes.  He wouldn't be doing them justice, his drawings were simply black charcoal on tanned parchment; he'd never get the piercing green properly displayed.

            She'd been only eight when he'd first seen her, the _only_ time he'd seen her.  And when he looked into her eyes, he'd suddenly felt a fierce protectiveness wash over him, a connection. He shadowed in the eyelids.  He was dumb-struck at what she had done, how she had managed to pull the child Empress out of the water after having freezing water and no air strain her body.  He'd seen her teeth and eyes clench in effort as she shoved the limp body over the edge of the ice, her arm trembling with the sheer amount of effort.  He gave a few hard lines in the irises, trying to get that edge of strength that radiated from her eyes.  And when he'd finally pulled them both out, when he'd assured himself the tiny princess was at least breathing and covered, he'd turned to find blazing green eyes.  And he could say, even still today, he'd never seen such beautiful eyes in his life.  He shadowed in the cheeks, and made the top arch of her nose visible, but not the entire thing.  He set down the black coal and wiped his hands on a cloth, placing the drawing aside for a moment.  He walked to his water basin and rinsed off the coal dust.  After drying his hands, he walked back over to his cot and picked up the parchment drawing.

            Jade had been a special girl, full of life and spirit.  He could tell, just from the ten minutes he'd seen her.  She hadn't even spoken ten words to him.  But he could tell.  She was special.  And that infuriated him most of all.  Someone so obviously special wasn't supposed to fall off a cliff and die a horrible death at such a young age.  He had been sure he'd be 30 and be hearing bards sing songs about her great deeds, and he'd smile, and remember he'd seen her once, had seen her greatness; the greatness he'd tried and failed to sketch just now.  He sighed and placed the drawing in the book with the others.  He wasn't an artist by any sense of the word; he was a soldier, a legionnaire.  It was simply a way to relax, a way to remember moments in his life when he thought he'd caught a glimpse of something special.

*****

A/N: Thank you so much for all your support.  I like this chapter; I think it's more a character building chapter than anything else.  And I didn't want us to loose track of those way back home while we focus on Jade in the Great Forest.

Please, READ AND REVIEW!!! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE.

Ok, also…it is….*checks calendar* April 22, 2004.  My Senior Thesis is due to our College Registrar on the 30th.  So…I won't be doing any more writing until that time, AT LEAST.  Graduation …..oh my GOD, I'm graduating college! ….is May 15th…so…I'll probably have lots and lots of work to do until about the 10 and than mad party until the 15th…senior week and all, you understand.  I'll start writing soon after that, I assure you.  I don't plan on stopping this story until it's done!  Just have some patience.

Love ya all.  
Karigan

Next Chapters:

6: One Piper, Two Pips

7: You? Syphon?

8: Make it Grow

10: hmm, tricky

11: The Visit

12: Lucky 13

13: Sakina

14: The Lies of War

(All chapters subject to rearrangements, deletion, change of title, additions, and any other weird thins I may decide to do.)  SMILE


	6. One Piper, Two Pip

A/N: Well, it's been a while, hasn't it? I know you have all been looking forward to the next chapter, so I will keep you waiting no longer. : )

Kari

* * *

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

By: Karigan Marie

Chapter 6: One Piper, Two Pip

* * *

The first few weeks had been, what her father would have described as complete culture shock. She didn't know what she was doing half the time, and the other half she spent trying to not make mistakes.

She had thought it would take months to learn to call up her magic, even with the 'proper' training. So when on the first day of receiving instruction from the old tree had bared her first purposeful green sparks of magic _ever_, she had been more than surprised. It had brought up hopeful thoughts that she might be able to master this magic sooner than expected and go home; but those happy thoughts vanished when the tree had informed her a few hours later that calling up the magic was one of the simplest things to do and not to get her hopes up. In fact, most of the plant life around her had a depressingly large amount of pessimism towards her leaving sooner than was necessary. She quickly deduced that overall, this pessimism extended to most of what the flora thought about. It bothered Jade to no end, that no matter what, they assumed the worst of _everything._

'Our life-span will be short', explained the bushes in martyrish voices. 'But we don't mind, our death is required for life everywhere.' 'The bases of our trunks are constantly torn to pierces by wild carnivores trying to mark their territory', argued the trees; 'but really, it's only expected'. 'Our beautiful blooms which carry our own young are picked and used as decorations', chortled a lovely vine, 'it's barbaric that human males offer our dead children as a way to gain a females favor. But it is our fate.'

Jade found such topics quite depressing, though she understood them in an odd way. She also found a bit of a problem in other areas. Clothing, for example. After three days of wearing the clothing she had left Solandia in, she had asked Justice what she was supposed to do for clothing. Justice had blanched and mumbled an 'I forgot about that' before walking off and turning up late that evening with two pairs of similar style clothing for her to alternate. Jade was now responsible for cleaning her own clothing in the streams. She'd have no problem with that. She just had to learn.

Her curiosity about where she would sleep at night was never really answered, so Jade had taken to bushing up soft moss and fallen leaves to create a sort of bed. It was softer and more comfortable than she imagined. In fact, she really didn't object to its comfort. Justice had asked her whether she would prefer to sleep up in the trees instead. Jade had looked up at the distant branches far above her head and imagined herself rolling over in her sleep and plunging to the ground. She had kindly refused. She was somewhat worried about wild animals at night, so a violet sprouting bush offered Jade nights under its heavily thorned bush. 'No animals tries to get at me,' stated the proud old bush, 'I'd stick them into next week.' From that night on, Jade found comfortable refuge with the old bush.

Food had started to become a problem. Not because there wasn't any, but because Jade had started feeling a tinge of regret whenever she ate some of the berries and vegetables that grew in the forest. In fact, she woke up from an upsetting dream that had pictured herself as almost cannibalistic. When Justice asked the next evening why she hadn't eaten anything that day, Jade had confessed her dilemma.

"You don't want to eat the plants?" questioned Justice

"Well…you said I was a third flora, didn't you? And it just seems…odd." Jade had responded half-heartedly. She really didn't want to give up eating plants, she really actually quite liked most vegetables and fruit.

Justice smiled. "You eat meat," she said plaintively. "You're two thirds animal as well, and that doesn't bother you. It's part of life, Jade. The plants understand this. They are the source of all life. Without them, none would survive or even be here. The only thing you should avoid is wastefulness. Never take something you don't plan on using. And you're not being cannibalistic unless you eat your own species. You don't eat humans, and as long as you don't eat vanilla, you're good to go."

Jade hadn't wanted to argue with that point, since she was only really semi-concerned with it. At Justices words of encouragement, she found no fault in indulging herself in delicious mangos.

Jade hadn't been back to Solandia since the day Justice had come to retrieve her, though she had the sneaking suspicion Justice had gone back once or twice. Though she thought it was probably to get something for Jade. When she asked if she could visit Solandia with Justice the next time she went, Justice had firmly stated 'No.' Jade found it a bit unfair. And after a good long battle of wills with each other over it, Justice had finally told Jade that humans were not going to help her learn faster. In fact, they might even stunt what she could achieve. Maybe in a few years, she could visit, when she had better control and free of influence. Jade had nearly hit the roof at the statement, though there was no roof to hit. No human contact for a few years! The thought was too much. It had been four days before Jade would even _look_ at a grumpy Justice after that.

She grew used to the isolation after a few months. That, or she grew accustomed to those around her, the plants and the firebirds. The later of which, excluding Justice, she really only saw on occasion. They spent much of their time above ground, in the treetops. She saw Lorelei more often than the others. The soft-spoken female would often times come to the forest floor and give Justice a few reproaches of her own. At which time, Justice would either flush crimson or turn pale, depending on the subject at hand. It made Jade feel better, serving to remind her that Justice wasn't all that much _older_ than she, in a manner of speaking.

* * *

Jade woke with streams of light that shone though the bush above her. A soft wind seemed to blow today giving the bush quite a cheery voice. 'Up, up, sprout. A new day awaits your growing stem.' Jade rolled over and buried her face in the leaves around her. With the next wind, she found herself sitting up with a yelp as a thorn was shoved into her side. Green magic squirted from the arms she jerked to her side and hit the bush, making what looked like a scorch mark.

"Sorry," muttered Jade apologetically.

'Quite all right. Now get up,' shooed the bush.

Jade grumbled her dislike of getting up as she crawled out of the little space under her protective bush. She stood and stretched out her muscles. She rubbed her eyes and then quickly brushed off the few leaves that stuck to her bare skin.

She smirked at the fact that she now slept naked. There really was no other option. She didn't have night clothing and she didn't want to dirty and crumple the only three pairs of clothing she had with her. There was also the fact that the air was so humid and thick, she would have found it impossible to sleep with sweaty clothing clinging to her all night.

She picked some leaves out of her mess of curls, wishing she had a brush. She was growing increasingly tired of having to comb out the twigs and leaves with her fingers. She reached under the bush again and dragged out two pairs of Solandian style clothing. She heard a swooping sound behind her and turned. A small red firebird came soaring towards her, quickly and without the look of stopping. Jade caught her breath and took a small hop back as the wings shortened and thinned, the body elongated, and the beak decreased and smoothed out. By the time Justice had fully shape-shifted into her human form, she was mere inches from the ground. As the last remaining feathers disappeared from her head to become silky tendrils, and her talons became toes, she took a small step onto the earth.

Jade frowned. "I'm never going to get used to you doing that."

Justice reached forward and grabbed her own set of bright red clothing from Jade with a small smile. "You like it, admit it."

Jade rolled her eyes. "Of coarse, I like it. It must be amazing to shape-shift," she said with only a touch of envy, "but it doesn't mean you flying right up to me like that doesn't surprise me."

"It's good practice," said Justice happily. "You can practice not reacting so severely when you get surprised.

The corner of Jade's lip twitched. "Lovely."

Justice's eyebrows lifted in mirth at the dryness of Jade's response. When the smirk didn't leave her Justice's face, Jade dropped her arms to her side with an exasperated sigh. "What?"

Bright blue eyes twinkled in mischievous laughter. "When you speak. You almost sound like me." Jade's face betrayed her confusion. "Never mind. Hey, listen. I was thinking we'd take a bit of a trip today."

Green eyes brightened. "To Solandia?"

"No," Justice grit out. "And stop asking. I was thinking more along the lines of the edge of the forest, on the northern edge. It really is quite spectacular. You leave the forest and you can see plains for endless miles."

Jade shrugged in indifference. "It makes for a change."

Having turned around to lead the way, Justice stopped and turned back around. "If you don't want to go?"

"Oh, stop." Jade gritted as she laced up the leather on her sandals. "You make everything so difficult."

Justice grit her teeth. "Well, if you'd stop being so poisonously subtle!"

Jade pulled the knot on her sandals tight quickly; the fact that, in her aggravation, she'd tied them a bit too tight for comfort, she ignored. She straightened with a snap and walked off, heading north, throwing a clipped "Let's go," over her shoulder.

* * *

By the time they had nearly reached their destination, only a few hours left until dusk, both tempers had mellowed. When Jade let out a tired yawn, Justice smirked. "We'll spend the night at on the plains. The sky is quite spectacular from there." Jade nodded. "I thought maybe you'd like to go hunting once we get there. We still have a few hours of daylight left."

Jade blanched. "How am I supposed to hunt with you? You turn into a Firebird and do it all yourself. I do nothing but watch."

Puckered lips of thought tinged Justice's face. "Well, I suppose if you knew how to hunt, you'd be able to hunt on your own."

It was a slap in the face; and Justice knew it. Jade's nose and cheeks flushed pink in anger. "Very observant," she snapped. "Maybe we can add self-preservation to the list of things Jade will never learn how to do because she has to learn how to control her uncontrollable magic!"

"It's not my fault you can't manage it!" Spat a flared up Justice.

"It _is_ your fault!" Jade's anger was beginning to boil over. "It's your fault you got caught in the first place!" Justice recoiled as if physically hit. "My parent's told me the whole story, Justice. They told me everything! About how you got caught by a mage; how you were supposed to stay away! I can see fault when it's there as good as anyone. If you hadn't been so Gods' offal curious, none of this would have _ever _happened!" Green sparks flew from Jade's clenched up hands and singed the roots under her feet. It wasn't fair; the fact that she'd have to stick around this place for countless years because of one curious immortal. It just wasn't fair!

She glared at Justice, willing her to feel just how angry she was. If she had to control how she showed her emotions, she'd certainly learn how to stare someone down so they knew when she was angry. Justice had looked down at Jade's words and continued to stand there silently, staring at her feet. It gave Jade the opportunity to keep up, what she thought, was a well-deserved rant. "All I ever do anymore is try and learn about my magic. All my days, my nights! I dream about learning this absurd magic! I'm sick of it!" She tried to keep her voice as even as possible; but made no effort to hide the venom in her words. "All _you_ ever do is tell me how I'm doing it wrong. I'm sick of being so far away from home. I'm sick of it!"

She was about to go into a whole other subject when she noticed a slight shake in Justice's shoulders. At first she was sure Justice was laughing at her; and it only served to inflame a whole new kind of anger. But when a small sniff carried over to her ears, Jade's heart skipped a beat. When a few silent seconds heralded another small sniff, Jade bit her lip severely in self-reproach. She'd made her cry? Justice? It was a few agonizing seconds of frantic word searching before she came out with some kind of phrase.

"Justice?"

She felt the crushing weight of guilt settle upon her when Justice raised red-rimmed eyes. "I know it's my fault. I know it is. Don't you think I know that?" The sniffs had started to turn into sobs. "I'm just trying to fix what I messed up. I know I push real hard. But it's only because I want you to do well. I don't want anything bad to happen to you. You have a hard road ahead of you. I know you do. I know how hard it'll be." Jade couldn't help the thought that Justice had absolutely no idea what she'd have to go through; she smothered the thought quickly. "I just don't know how to make you see how important it is you learn this."

Jade took a deep breath and looked around herself in discomfort. Of all the things she expected to see today, Justice breaking down into sobs was not one of them. "I'm sorry," she mumbled. "It's not your fault. I know it's not. I just…got angry." When Justice showed no signs of slowing her sobs, Jade grew desperate. "Please, stop crying?" Her small hands tugged at her loose shirt in agitation. "I'm really sorry," she tried again.

At long last Justice's sobs dissipated. She sniffed a few times and wiped away tears. Jade felt the anxiety leave her body. "You must think me so stupid," it came out as a pathetic laugh.

"No." Jade couldn't help but wonder why this was such a touchy subject.

Pale hands wiped away the last traces of tears. Justice took a steadying breath before speaking up again. "Come on. I want to show you something." Jade walked along behind her for a few minutes until she noticed a sharp stop in trees. They stepped out onto grass that reached up to Jade's hips. Wind swept through the blades and made them dance. Jade stared in open wonder at the soft song that rose from the countless grasses. It was soft and melodic, almost hypnotic, constant. "There's always wind. The grass sings without stop. Legend has it, they sing to lure the rain, which comes but once every ten years and lasts an entire season."

Jade looked around at the endless sky, which carried only a few distant white clouds. "The night sky must be amazing," she breathed.

Justice smiled. "It is." She took a deep breath. "My mother suggested I bring you here, just to the edge of the Inland Plains."

Jade turned to look at Justice in curiosity. "These are the Inland Plains?" There were vast sections of the grass covered in red and purple flower, other parts colored with soft yellow buds. It was like a painting. And she could smell the very last traces of snow as if it had traveled from far away over the wind.

"Well," Justices commented. "…The southern edge.

"I thought it was much further away." The wheels were turning in Jade's head, trying to rethink how far she was.

"It's not as far as you think." It was as if Justice knew what she was thinking. "The Inland Plains are very vast. But if you were to leave on a dry year, which really isn't all that hard, you could make it across them in two months. Than you reach the Great Southern Mountains. You have to turn west before you cross them. Some of the tallest mountains in the world stand in your way. About two or three weeks travel to the west will let you cross lower mountains, which aren't so cold. I'd say at least a month just to cross them. That's how long it took us when I was captured. Once you cross the mountains, it's only a weeks ride to the border of Southern Carthak, which is mostly desert. It took us almost a month to reach a small city just out of the dessert." Jade was listening avidly. "So…if you're lucky enough to get good weather…I'd say it's just under a four month journey."

That wasn't so very long. Jade had been sure it would be at least six months and she had been very kind on that number. Suddenly, home didn't look so very far away. "Thank you."

Justice smiled. "I know you've been worrying about it. I just wanted you to know. Maybe it'll make you feel better."

A small smile tinged Jade's lips. "It does. Thank you again, Justice. For showing this to me."

The air of indifference stole over Justice's features once again. "Why don't you set us up for tonight? I'll go catch us some dinner."

* * *

They had just stepped back into the Great Forest the following morning to head back to the colony when Jade heard and saw the scrape of something flash across the edge of her perception. She swept a long tendril of curly hair away from her damp face, looking around in curiosity. She heard the scrape behind her again and swung to face it, only to have missed it.

Justice stopped to wait. "What's wrong?"

Those things. I think. The ones you said I should ignore." She heard a scrape this time, but didn't see anything.

Justice's eyes scanned the trees around them. "Let's just keep walking."

Jade took a few unsure steps. "What is it, again?"

"A Piper," she said shortly. Ignore them and maybe it'll go away." Justice seemed greatly perturbed by the subject.

Jade slowed her pace as she looked to see where another flash of something had come from. "What are Pipers?" It dropped down in front of her, catching her off guard. Jade stumbled back in surprise, falling against a tree.

It looked like a human, sort of. It appeared to stand on two legs, though it was crouched down some, and smaller. It was a female, Jade could tell that much. Her feet were placed widely to give her more movement; yet she had no toes. In fact, her feet ended in points. She wore a bright orange wrap around her body that was torn off at one shoulder and looked as if she'd tried to rip it off. It reached only to her upper thighs, leaving long thin legs covered in black markings revealed. The one shoulder and arm that was free of any concealment also had odd markings along the entire length. Her slender neck had the markings as well, though sparser.

All ten fingers ended in points that looked as if they were capable of gouging out eyes. Black almond shaped eyes that had more markings around them took over most of the small face, but her teeth were the most frightening. They were razor sharp, each tooth having two points on either side; and from what she could see, two very sharp fangs at least on the upper set. Wild hair the same color as the wrap she wore seemed to be going in every direction possible. And Jade could see, that she had wings, like that of a butterfly. But they were so sickly looking. They were almost wilted; the skin on the small immature wings saggy and had various holes in them. She didn't look young, so Jade couldn't imagine that her wings were still growing. Growing into what, anyway? They were so damaged; this little creature would never fly.

Jade gripped the tree she had fallen against in surprise as the small creature straightened to her full height, she barely reached Jade's shoulders. "There are no such things as Pipers," she hissed softly.

Jade stumbled over her words. "I'm…I'm sorry?"

"I am a Piper," came the voice again.

Jade looked around in confusion. On the other side of the Piper, Justice rolled her eyes and looked a bit angry. "But you just said…"  
"There are no such things as Pipers." A bit of blood trickled from the Piper's lip where she had sliced it with one of her razor sharp teeth. She didn't seem to notice. Jade stayed silent. How was she supposed to respond to that?

Justice stomped forward and lowered herself to the little Piper's face. "You're not wanted." Jade cringed. The Piper had just hissed dangerously in Justice's unyielding face. A laugh was all Justice would dignify. "Which one are you? Cobweb? Redcone? Sunburn?"

"Rainmyst," was the short reply. Jade stopped short, was that humor in the low voice. "Perhaps one should look at one's own name before looking to humor on others." Justice's eyes narrowed.

Jade finally found a voice. You're a Piper?"

Rainmyst turned to face her again. "Yes," came the calm reply. There was a twinkle of something downright uneasy about her.

"Are there many Pipers around here?" It had been an innocent question. She hadn't expected Rainmyst to jump at her. They landed on the ground; Jade sprawled on her back, Rainmyst positioned above her looking rather annoyed. Justice didn't even flinch.

"There are no such things as Pipers," was the curt reply.

Jade was quite confused. "What? But you just said…"

"Pip," Justice mumbled. "One Piper. Two Pip."

Jade blinked up at the Piper. "Oh."

* * *

A/N: This chapter has a lot of different things going on, but I hope you liked it. Let me know. Later.

Karigan Marie


	7. Nefarious Creatures

A/N: Umm…what can I say? I stopped this story about a year ago. I kind of lost my mojo for writing, if you will. But it was always still in my head, the entire story. It kept replaying itself over and over, begging me to actually get out onto paper. So I'm finally picking up the pen (or the keyboard) and beginning again. Wish me luck!

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

By: Karigan Marie

Chapter 7:Nafarious Creatures

Jade hadn't processed the situation completely; her mind continued to try and wrap itself around what was standing in front of her. She's never even _heard_ of such a creature, let alone seen one. But then again, no one in Tortall had heard of Firebirds before Justice came crashing unceremoniously into the picture. She wasn't sure what to make of the creatures appearance. There was a certain beauty to the slender and strong limbs that were covered in ebony markings. Yet one look at the piercing teeth made a sick hole form in Jade's stomach.

The creature leaned towards her, teach bared as if to bite. Jade pressed herself against the tree as Justice took a step forward in alarm. Rainmyst's seething hiss rang out as another creature dropped behind her and grabbed her hair, pulling it back violently.

Jade's heart started beating in alarm as a curved, but obviously sharp blade was placed at Rainmyst's throat. Jade's eyes noticed the thin and delicate hands that held the blade with expertise. Sharply pointed fingers with no nails lead back into a graceful wrist covered in black marking. Jade's eyes snapped up to a face that was a bit alarming. It seemed to be another Piper. And though this one looked slightly less savage than Rainmyst, she didn't lack in appearance of danger.

Long coal hair hung in uncombed strands from a small and delicate face that was sun-kissed. The tip of her nose and nostrils held a grayish color. She didn't have markings as extravagant as Rainmyst's around her eyes. The skin coloring actually reached from the inside corners of her eyes down a ways towards her nose. The grey that surrounded the tip of her nose also surrounded her eyes. The affect was a curious resemblance to a predatory cat. The rest of her face was thin and angular, her lips wide but thin. Light brown eyes contrasted her dark hair. The markings started again at her shoulders, which were completely bare, and led down to the top of her breasts, which were bare as well. She had sleeves that began slightly above her elbows that reached down to her wrists. They seemed made out of…flower pedals, extremely large flower pedals. Her torso was covered in similar material all the way down to her feet, which Jade couldn't see due to the her clothing's loose fall down, what looked like, slender legs. Jade momentarily wondered if this Piper had no toes either.

The Piper's hard eyes were trained on Rainmyst's face. When she spoke, razor sharp teeth made themselves visible. And though no blood seemed to result from her sharp teeth, they were no less frightening. "I told you to keep away," was the deadly warning.

Rainmyst hissed and struggled to get her hair loose. "You sorry ingrate, I'll rip out your tongue and force it down your throat."

The dark haired Piper wrenched the hair back more and sliced her blade to draw a sliver of blood. Rainmyst stilled instantly. "…and then I'll bite you hand off." She pulled Rainmyst to her feet and dragged her back a few feet away from Jade. "Nefarious creature," she hissed. "Get back to that hole in the mud you call a den and let me not see you again until FirRose has forgiven you for what you've just done."

She jerked the smaller Piper once more and then threw her a good four feet away from her. Rainmyst turned around and flared her sorry wings, hissing angrily. The taller Piper flared her own wings, ones Jade hadn't even noticed. Jade gasped in surprise. This new Piper's wings were brilliant purple…blue…red…they kept changing colors. New colors streaking out from the root of the wings shooting out to the tips where numerous black spotted 'eyes' remained unchanged at the ends. They weren't damaged like Rainmyst's. They were healthy and glistening with healthy moistness and looked much more like a butterflies wings. They had odd edgings, uneven but undamaged. And just like a butterfly's wings, there were two separate wings on each side, one much smaller and closer to the top than the other. They were absolutely beautiful.

Rainmyst backed away before looking once more at Jade and Justice. She hissed in anger and then, faster than Jade thought possible, disappeared behind some trees. Jade looked over at Justice, who stood with her arms crossed and a look of annoyance across her face. She seemed to snap out of it and landed her hard blue eyes on the new Piper. "Joy," she said flately. "Another one."

The Piper pulled in her wings walked to a near by creek and rinsed the slightly bloodied blade off before standing strait again and walking away. Jade bolted up. "Wait!" The Piper turned and stared at her. "I um…thanks. I mean…"

The Piper turned away again and left, in which direction, Jade couldn't seem to figure out. Justice snorted. "Typical."

Jade rose from the ground and picked off some leafs from her silk pants. "That was…odd."

Justice shrugged. "Better you forget about them." She took hold of Jade's arm and led her back towards the colony.

"Why?" Jade questioned. "I don't understand. What are Pips? Are they Immortals?"

Justice sighed as they walked side by side, side-stepping some bushes. "Yes. They're…well…let's just say they were dreamed up by a little human girl who watched her father and brothers burn in her home and her mother and sisters tortured by soldiers."

Jade swallowed, a small frown marring her face. "How terrible." Justice only nodded. "So she dreamed them up; like other immortals. Why did she dream them up? They're…a bit hostile."

Justice chuckled. "That, they are." She reached up to tall bush and yanked on some ripe fruit, tossing one over to Jade, who caught it and took a loud crunching bite. After Justice swallowed her own bite, she continued. "Story goes, the little girl's village soldiers were unable, maybe even unwilling, to defend a poor family during war. She was the only one of her family to survive. After the attack, she went to her King and begged for justice. Her King, though compassionate, told her he could not spare his soldiers for something as unimportant as vengeance. He gave her over to the care of some servants where she was to grow up in safety."

"That was kind of the King," Jade stated.

Justice nodded. "But it wasn't what the girl wanted. Hate and vengeance was all she wanted. She wanted vengeance for her family, something to torture for eternity those who had slaughtered her family." A small sigh escaped Justice. "She dreamed up a creature that would die defending those unable to defend themselves in her village. But her dreams were also of a creature who would hate like her; who would fight without mercy like she wanted."

"Goddess," Jade whispered.

Justice nodded. "The result, of which, are those vicious, wicked, and might I add, rather annoying, little creatures back there." Justice pointed a thumb over her shoulder. "Pips."

"What do they do all day? They didn't seem to like each other." Jade was frowning as she walked.

"The Gods only know. My best bet is they spend their time killing each other off. And with so few males…"

"Why's that?"

"Oh, well…there are only a handful of males. The females live in colonies or 'Dens', together. How they manage to do that is beyond me, but, they do. Males are loners. Every so often, he'll come upon a Den and…well…become rather useful if you know what I mean."

Jade could feel the hint of color tinge her cheeks but held it back fiercely before it got out of hand. "Yes. I understand."

"There wicked little creatures. But…they fight better than any human can. They're taught to fight since birth. And they aren't taught to simply win, they're taught to kill. Make it very difficult for anyone under their attack to spread the word they might be around and out for blood."

Jade inwardly flinched. She wasn't used to the idea of such viscous killing. "But the taller one didn't kill Rainmyst."

"Well, Rainmyst is still very young. Couldn't be more than a century."

"Naturally," was Jade's amused reply."

Justice rolled her eyes. Rainmyst wasn't very normal, either. Well, what's considered normal for a Piper. She seemed a bit…touched in the head."

"Oh…" Jade chewed on her lower lip in concentration before pushing back a lock of curly black hair.

Justice peeked at her from the corner of her eye. "Come on…I told everyone we'd be back by nightfall."

Two months passed by before Jade got another peek at a Piper. Or…at least, she thought it was a Piper. She'd been standing in one of the creeks, completely bare, using soap root to wash off the constant sheen of sweat on her body. She'd kneeled down slightly to rinse off the cleaning plant when she'd caught sight of green plants rustling without the wind. She'd tilted her head and listened for the flora's voices but they hadn't told her much. Ivy's were a definite pain, she'd decided. They were tricky little plants who liked to hide poisonous secretions that would make an armadillo think twice. And they were just as obstinate as they were poisonous. After that incident, another four would pass by before she'd see another.

Her eleventh birthday had come and gone. Solandia didn't use the same calendar as Tortall and Carthak had. They apparently went on a ten month cycle rather than a 12 month one. Jade adamantly refused to adjust to this twist, and she wasn't near good enough in math or astrology to figure out the equivalence for her mind. She'd come close, she thought, at least. She'd added up the days she'd spent in Solandia and the days she'd been in the Forest and the days she'd spent in captivity and thought she'd come up with a fairly accurate date. Her birthday passed by without notice of anyone but herself. Justice and the other Firebirds didn't seem to celebrate such 'human' holidays as no one had ever mentioned something like a Birthday. She didn't mind, but she made a mental note do something special on her father's birthday. Maybe she couldn't be there with him in body, but her heart would be.

It was only a few days after it had passed that she'd come up, mot unexpectedly, on a Piper. Or rather, the Piper came up on her. She'd been exploring some darker shaded regions of the Forest one evening when a Piper popped its little head out of large fallen Redwood Log that had moss growing all over it. Jade took a step back and held her breath. The Piper had light brown hair hanging loosely over her shoulders in uneven tresses. Her face was half covered by a sort of black mask that covered her eyes. She had dark lips on a rather tan face and the eyes behind the mask seemed to be dark brown. There was an impish smile of curiosity spread across the Piper's face as it tilted on one place to the side, observing her quietly.

Jade cleared her throat quietly. "Um…hello." She braced herself for some sort of attack.

Forest green membranous wings snapped up and out. Jade's eyes sparkled in wonder. The Piper's wings looked quite curious. It seemed that if you'd placed a giant leaf behind her and ripped it down the main vein to form two halves and torn the edges a slight bit, this is what would constitute her wings. Jade tried to hide a smile. "Hello," the deep voice came from between sharp teeth.

Jade searched for something to say in her mind. "I'm Jade." She inwardly rolled her eyes at such a witty conversation starter.

The Piper didn't seem to mind. "Nefarian." Pointed fingers came up to brace on the dead tree as Nefarian pushed up and out of the hollow space. She sat upon the log, one leg hanging loosely over the edge while the other was pulled up tight against her chest. Dark green cloth of some sort hugged her torso closely, leaving everything else bare making it quite obvious that the black markings all over her arms and legs went all the way up. The black mask, which carried pointed ear-like ends that wrapped around her own pointed ears, was pushed up her face to rest on her head. Soft freckles dusted her nose, but they were overshadowed by vine-like black markings starting at the outer edges of the eyes all the way back to her ears. "You are a curious creature." She looked harmless enough until that moment; sharp dangerous teeth showing just how dangerous she could be.

Jade's eyes skittered down to her own hands. "I suppose you would think that."

Jade met Nefarian' eyes once again. "Though, to be completely honest, you are a curious creature, as well."

Nefarious tilted her head to the other side, sliding along on one plane, making the move eerie. "You are different from the other humans," she stated simply.

Jade sighed inwardly. Would absolutely everyone and _everything_ be able to tell she wasn't normal? "Is that good or bad?"

"I haven't decided," came the deep voice tinted with the a similar accent as Justice's. "Though you live with that half-breed. It doesn't speak well for you."

"Half-breed?" Jade questioned. "Oh," She snapped her mouth shut. She was suddenly glad Justice wasn't hear, the fallout wouldn't have been good. "You disapprove of my company?"

"Firebirds are proud and arrogant," Nefarian hissed with disgust. "Fancy themselves God's among Immortals. They're nothing more than canaries singing in a cage."

Jade raised eyebrows slightly in surprise. "Well…I…I don't think they're so bad. But you're entitled to your own opinion, I suppose."

Nefarian blinked slowly, evaluating every movement with steady eyes. "You are very curious, indeed."

A change in topic was definitely in order. She pointed to the odd metal hanging from her…whatever she called the cloth that covered her moderately. "May I ask what that is?"

Dark eyes didn't leave hers as a tanned and dangerous hand calmly laid upon the hilt of some sort of weaponry. Without looking, she unhooked the thing and let it slide into an attack position. Jade swallowed, wondering how the movements hadn't sliced off a finger. The blade large and sharp, the handle wrapped in some sort of worn out leather that showed years of use. Just above the leather protection, a two inch spike came from the side of the blade. A third of the way up another part of metal crossed perpendicular and curved up into a razor sharp point. Jade scrunched her eyes at the odd weapon. Four points to the 'knife' instead of the common one. Edges on all sides were sharp and deadly and Jade felt slightly ill at the idea of any portion of it catching any portion of her. Nefarian carefully reset the complicated blade back in it's holder. "A katar," she stated.

Jade snapped out of it. "I'm sorry, what?"

Nefarian didn't blink. "You asked what it was. It's a katar. A weapon."

"I noticed," Jade said. She pressed her lips together into a flat line and raised her eyebrows at Nefarian. "It looks…dangerous."

Confusion clouded Nefarian's eyes. "Anything is dangerous when used as a weapon."

Jade nodded, staring at the strange creature. "That it is." Silence reigned for a good minute before Jade broke under Nefarian's piercing gaze. "Is it difficult to learn?"

"Is what difficult to learn?"

Jade licked her lips and pointed to the covered blade. "Umm…to fight."

"With a katar." It wasn't a question.

"Right," Jade nodded. "With a katar. Is it difficult?"

"It is more difficult than a scythe."

"Oh." Jade looked around uncomfortably. Nefarian continued to stare at her. Jade felt rather stupid. "What's a scythe?"

That got a reaction. Nefarian moved her head to another angle. "A weapon."

Jade sighed. This was getting ridiculous. "Yes. I gathered that. Is it much different from a katar?"

"Yes."

Jade let out a breath. She'd been expecting a slight more complicated answer than that. This was like pulling teeth. "I'd like to see one sometime."

Nefarian turned without another word and began to walk away. Jade eyes widened and she suddenly wondered if she'd offended the Piper. After a few steps, Nefarian turned around, noting Jade was farther away. "If I am to show you a scythe, you will need to follow…" she stopped, perhaps thinking "…Jade." Jade jumped slightly with a small "Oh," and quickly followed.

A/N: I'll post soon. Don't freak out and think it'll be another year. impish smile

Please review! I always liked reviews.


	8. Keep Going

Hmm…wow…it's been a while. Sorry. I really will try to make updates more often. Keep on my case. I forget if you don't!

* * *

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

By: Karigan Marie

Chapter 8: Keep Going

* * *

She felt the scythe's wooden rod snap her fingers and felt her lungs contract in pain. She dropped her own in reaction and felt herself bite her lower lip so hard it began to bleed. The hollow 'clunk of her scythe hitting the ground was drowned out by Nefarian's words. "Keep going."

Jade clumsily reached down and picked up the rod with fingers that wouldn't cooperate. She'd been stupid to drop the weapon. She'd been through this enough times by now to know Pips did _not_ stop a fight for a couple of bruised fingers; even if they _were_ broken. She brought up the dulled point in a butterfly sweep that Nefarian easily dodged before lunging with the wrong foot. Nefarian took the obvious opening and cracked the metal of the scythe into the back of Jade's legs. She felt her feet leave the ground and her back meet it. The air came crashing out of her lungs so quickly, Jade could hardly move. She forced herself to role. Slow though she was, it was just enough. The harsh metal of the scythe's edge slammed into the ground where Jade's knee would have been.

Nefarian reared back quicker than Jade could stand and slammed the back of Jade's head with the side of the metal blade. The world turned blood red as Jade fell to her knees and immediately vomited, barely managing to miss the mess as she fell forward and to the side. The instant nausea ran its course as her vision, which had doubled, came back into focus.

The smile filled with wickedly sharp teeth came into view and Jade had the sudden urge to lift the scythe and pierce it through Nafarian's jaw and up through her brain. "You didn't have to do that," was all she could manage.

Eyes scrunched in anger. "Who is teaching who?"

Jade breathed in and tried to sit up, wincing at the sharp sting in her hand. "I think you nearly knocked my brains out through my mouth." She felt the back of her head and noticed a rather large bump.

"Not enough force for that," was the even reply. Green membranous wings stretched lazily. "Besides, you needed some sense knocked into you. No one would know _I_ taught you how to fight. You looked like a squawking bird."

"A squawking bird wouldn't have been so ridiculous as to let a Piper teach it how to fight." Jade closed her eyes in frustration when the voice came from a nearby tree. She looked up to see Justice sitting there with a rather unforgiving look. "If you ask me…"

"I do not ask you," Nafarian's voice was dangerously flat. "I do not tell you how to teach _your_ lessons Red Canary. Do not inform me how to conduct mine."

Justice jumped down the twenty or so feet from the tree with relative ease. Jade sighed in envy. She's always been a fantastic tree climber, but that agility was beyond her mere _human_ abilities. Justice snapped her words out. "Two years, Jade. Two incredible years putting up with this…" she flailed her hands at the Piper. "…vicious form of fitting. Don't you think you've had your face bashed in enough?"

Jade rubbed at her fingers, trying to get the swelling to stop. "It's a thought that's crossed my mind on occasion." She wiped at her bloody lip and stood, rolling her shoulders as a solid ache began to throb. "But I think I'm improving."

Justice scoffed. "You're so thick-headed." She turned jumped into the air, quickly shifting into her natural form. She screeched her rage as she flew away, leaving a ringing in Jade's ears. Jade sighed and watched her go.

Nafarian smirked scathingly. "She's too sensitive." Jade sighed and sat on a large log that had recently fallen. Jade signed and inwardly rolled her eyes as the stump, smarting from its recent loss of the majority of its body, let out a series of intolerable comments about her upbringing. Nafarian watched her for a few moments. "You might be able to win a fight against a beginner. But you'd probably come out of it worse for ware."

Jade gave a caustic glare before starting back towards the denser part of the forest where she spent the majority of her time. "I'll see you tomorrow, Nafarian."

Nefarian grinned in a way only Pipers could before snapping her wings open and using them to speed her dash behind some brush. Jade began to trek home with a noticeable limp. She'd be sore for a week after this session. She deftly swooped up some obliging aloe vines to sooth onto her fingers. She rubbed at the leave until the oils spilled out onto her offended digits. She laced some magic into them, making their potent pain relieving chemicals stronger.

She couldn't help the inward smirk at the amount of magic she'd acquired in less than 3 years of residence among the Great Forest. At 13 and a half, she'd leaned the basic control of releasing and reigning in her gift. It was always an effort to reign in the magic. Which just figured. She could release it easily enough with a simple temper tantrum. Getting it back under control after one was an entirely different story. She'd spent the last year working on self-control. Not allowing her feelings to effect her actual actions. The most interesting of actions caused some very unwanted reactions from the flora. An exasperated sigh six months ago at the wrong moment had lead to an orchard of cherry trees to gnarl themselves into unimaginable knots. And while they, the cherry trees, had protested madly about the compromising positions they found themselves in, didn't present an immediate _danger_, something like that from a mere sigh had been a sign from the Gods that she'd better learn some self-control, immediately.

By the time she reached the trees that housed the enormous nests of firebirds, her fingers had stopped their swelling enough for her to climb up the nearest reachable branch. It took her only five minutes to reach the first nest, occupied by a small female, not that much older that Justice. Her feathers were a deeper red that Justice's, but there were still a number of silver feathers littering her coat. "Wingside," she greeted. The soft chirp was all the comfort Jade needed. She continued up the tree until she reached Challanger's nest. She squatted against the trunk and watched the strong but young male prune himself. His eyes met hers and he asked the unspoken question. "Did you run into a tree?"

Jade smirked and shrugged. "In a matter of speaking."

He continued preening. "Masochist."

A full fledged smile plastered itself against her face. "You're one to speak." That had gotten his attention. "I heard you gave yourself that name. No better way to make sure Hunter picks on you."

He chortled in laughter. "I like to keep him on his claws."

Jade scrunched her eyes. "He'd kill you with a single slash."

The comment didn't even faze him. "For a while still, yes. But not forever."

Jade worried her lip. "So you will challenge him one day."

He ruffled his feathers in a close resemblance of a shrug. "Not for a few decades still." Jade sighed. She pulled her knees up to her chest and winced at the soreness in her body. Challanger spared her a look and gave a large sigh. "Come rest with me tonight. You look like you need a good pillow. And as we've discovered, you like nothing better than a good pillow stuffed with feathers."

The comment always made her smile. She cuddled up to the red raptor and sighed in content. "Challanger?"

"Yes?"

"How will you know it will be time to challenge Hunter? Are you not frightened?"

He sighed deeply and lay in silence for a few moments. Finally he answered softly. "We must all make the decision. Sometimes that decision is forced on us. But it is far more difficult to make the decision for ourselves. But decide we must. Or live our lives in fear and hiding."

Jade sighed. "I figured you'd say something like that."


	9. Out of the Woods

Wow…I told you if you didn't remind me, I'd forget. And look…I forgot. Well…here's the next chapter. I'm getting into some difficult material as far as my direction goes. This has always been the part of the story that goes differently in my head each time. The next five or six chapter will be hard to get out cause I can't decide how I want to go about it. Bare with me.

The Secret Magic: 3: Whisperings

By: Karigan Marie

Chapter 9: Out of the Woods

She'd been walking most of the morning at a fairly brisk pace. Quickly stepping over logs and ducking under some lower branches, she anticipated coming upon the village by late morning. She wasn't quite sure, though. She was making an educated guess. Though how educated was anyone's guess considering the educated portions stemmed from her memories more so than actual knowledge. It had been 3 years since she'd left the village called Solandia. And that in and of itself was a matter she'd been curious about. The village was called Solandia. But was it part of something bigger? A country, perhaps? She had a sneaking suspicion she shouldn't ask.

Jade heard her before she saw her. She signed and gave an inward shrug. It was just as well. She wasn't going to be able to hide the fact she was heading into actual 'human' presence from anyone. She knew they'd smell it on her the instant she returned. Justice walked up next to her from behind a tree, hands crossed in perturbation. The scowl that marred her ivory face was priceless. Jade contained the smirk with carefully studied restraint, barely.

"I don't suppose I could talk you out of this?" It was more of a resigned statement than a question.

Jade's eyes quirked. "I'm hemorrhaging for Gods' sake, Justice. What would you like me to do?"

Justice rolled her eyes and threw back her hands in exasperation. "You're _not _hemorrhaging. How many times do I have to say that?" She hopped in front of Jade with ease. "I thought you said your mother had explained this stuff to you?"

"She did," was the simple response. Jade felt herself heat up on the inside. She would _not _have this conversation with a creature who laid eggs.

"So what's the problem?" Justice looked exasperated, which was just hilariously ironic. Wasn't she the one who'd squawked around for two days when she'd experienced her first molting a year ago? She'd spent two weeks carrying on about the unbearable itch. She'd ended up cheating, shifting into human form to avoid the bother. She'd been unpleasantly surprised when she'd shifted back and noticed the molting had just waited for her to turn back.

"The problem is…" and she really _wasn't _going to have this conversation with Justice, she repeated to herself. "…I'd rather see someone a little more versed in the functioning's of my body than you."

Justice rolled her eyes. "You've been having monthlies for a while now, Jade. What more do you need to know."

Jade's temper started to simmer. She bit the inside of her cheek to keep from spitting out something nasty. The amazingly painful back aches from the last two days had sheared her patience down to potentially dangerous levels, given the right push. Nights were spent in curled up agony with cramps and days in disgusting tiredness. And with the limited supplies of clothing Justice provided her with, cleanliness was becoming an issue. Jade hadn't spent the last 3 years with meticulously clean birds to go around feeling this _filthy_ all the time. She'd had the last straw. She'd have to seek more learned folk, specifically, women, about this issue. Besides, it was about time she was allowed to see another human face.

When they walked into the clearing, it was all Jade could do not to run back into the forest. She felt her heart rate pick up to an alarming rate. Her hands began to shake slightly and her breathing became erratic. She hadn't been in contact with humans since she left here 3 years before. She hadn't had to worry about what they'd think of her for so long, the thought of having to face the looks of disgust and fear made bile rise up in her throat. She was disgusted with herself. All the carefully practiced restraint seemed to go out the window when faced with something as simple as this.

When a passing mother and child smiled at her and continued on their way as if nothing was different, Jade had to remember that she wasn't in Tortall. She was in Solandia. No one here knew about what she was capable of. It wasn't Kilbao. No one here had heard rumors of the strange child who could create such havoc.

It struck her as odd, that they didn't stare. They walked through some of the walkways slowly. She didn't look much like them. Most of the people here were black eyed. And while they had hair as black as hers, if not blacker, it was straight and fine to her curly and thick. She watched some girls, who she thought might actually be around her own age talk amongst themselves in a language completely foreign to Jade.

She noticed their clothing and grimaced at her own. They were similar cuts and styles. But Jade's were dirty, had tears and were wrinkled. She reached up and tried to sort out her hair, sure it was sticking out all around her. She shuffled her bare feet self-consciously. She hadn't worn shoes in almost 3 years. 'I must look like a street beggar.'

Justice pursed her lips out in thought. A quick once over and an odd look prompted Jade to stop and ask an unspoken question. Justice quirked her lips before she responded. "You're certainly thin enough to be one."

Jade's mouth dropped open in astonishment. Looking down at herself, a frown marred her eyebrows. She was small, compared to Justice's human form. But she was almost a foot taller than any of the Pips. Of course, that really wasn't something to go on. She'd always just compared herself to the only person she could; Justice. She was a good 5 or six inches shorter than Justice, and wasn't as 'filled out' as her. Though they were close in age, Justice certainly _looked_ older. Her human form had filled out curves Jade has blushed to consider having one day. She thought maybe she was a _'late bloomer'_. She was 13 and had only just started getting monthlies this last season. She couldn't be dependent on them, erratic as they were. Her body had barely started to develop.

Amena had been almost 13 when Jade had last seen her. Jade could distinctly remember more _curves_ than she herself was presently sporting. Her base of comparison wasn't all that adequate, she had to admit, but she'd just assumed she was as 'blossomed' as any other girl her own age. It figured if she was deficient in this too. Truly fitting.

As far as skin and bones…she thought she'd actually put on weight. She certainly ate enough. Fruit and meat were the two constants in her diet. One provided from the forest, the other from the firebirds who hunted for her. Learning how to make and bank her own fire to cook the meat had been an adventure in and of itself. She wouldn't even think about how ashamed her mother would be at the idea that Jade couldn't hunt for herself.

She couldn't be _that_ thin. At least, not as thin as when she first left Solandia for the woods. She could count her ribs then, which she couldn't do now.

"Are you coming?" Jade snapped out of her thoughts with a soft shake of her head. Justice had come up to a grouping of houses and turned to face her.

Jade trotted up to her and glowered. "I think you enjoy making me nervous." It was an old accusation. Justice merely grinned. Jade glared.

They continued walking by old familiar sights. The occasional white tiger with its swishing tail standing guard or resting in the shadows was not the comfort to Jade they were to the villagers. She'd never been partial to animals. A trait she would have liked to pick up from her mother, it was just another reason Jade felt distant from her parents.

She didn't like thinking about them. She mad a concerted effort not too. The feelings that took over her when they crossed her mind were down right frightening. The predominant feelings that came from memories of her father were uncertainty and separation. She didn't think she could ever face him again. If she ever went back to Tortall or Carthak, she'd have no choice but to face him. And face what, exactly? She couldn't put her finger on what it was she was so uncertain about. Face that she'd abandoned him? Like her mother? She'd adored him as a small girl. He'd been the sun to her; knowledgeable in all things; except her magic. Maybe she was terrified of seeing what he'd become; what her abandonment had done to him.

She felt her stomach turn at the idea he might have actually 'broken' from the experience. He'd nearly done so when her mother had left. And with that thought, Jade's mind shifted to the ever present feeling of discontentment. She didn't want to think about her. Didn't want to acknowledge her existence. She'd gone and died on him and her. She'd left and that was the end of it. Jade took a deep breath and pushed down the sudden surge of what she could only classify as resentment. She was being unfair. Being murdered didn't exactly constitute as leaving of your own free will. She chided herself, tried to accept things as they were. In the end, it always just sat there, in the pit of her stomach, eating away at what ever was left of her inside.

Again, her thoughts were interrupted. This time though, her attention was wrenched away from inner turmoil by the horrible sound of a horse's scream. Both girls turned in surprise to the direction of the sound. It repeated itself a number of times, each growing more terrified. Justice seemed to be concentrating hard in the direction, working out in her mind, as most Firebirds did, the situation before actually getting involved. Jade couldn't see anything. He heart, however, raced with apprehension. She knew those sounds.

She'd heard it years ago in Corrus when her mother would take her out into the city to handle some problems dealing with animals. She'd heard that sound before and knew it for what it was because of how it made her bones rattle with pity. Obviously, it was a horse. But the horse's scream spoke volumes. It was in pain and it was terrified. In a village full of people who didn't seem at all worried about anything and tigers who would be the first to react to danger, it seemed inevitably that if she were to walk in that direction, Jade would find a horse who'd broken something, likely a foot, and was being held down to be put down.

Her feet moved before she realized what she was doing. And before Justice's hand landed on her forearm, she'd turned the corner and felt her heart sink as her eyes confirmed what her ears had heard. There, in one of the corals surrounded by 6 or 7 men, all struggling and speaking in Solandia's unfamiliar language, was a glorious dark bay mare. It was of the Solandian Breed, bigger than any horse Jade had ever seen up close. Even as it struggled on the ground, rolling and kicking, screaming out in fright, she could tell it carried the tall but sleek build she'd seen from afar years ago. A blaze raced down it's forehead to just above the nostrils, more heavily pronounced on the horses left side. The rest of the body glimmered almost black except around the hoofs where its bay color became more prominent. One sock, on the left front hoof, was it's only other marking; and from the looks of it, that was precisely the leg that was giving the horse so much trouble. She tried jumping up a number of times but would collapse back down when she tried to put weight on it.

One man held a wickedly sharp knife, trying to position himself around the horse's neck. He spoke softly, almost kindly to the animal. He was trying to be merciful. And if Jade had been a selfless person, she would have closed her eyes and walked away. But the bay's wide terrified eyes seemed to focus on her and she screamed again, struggled and snorted. Jade took a step back in alarm. The mare's eyes were brown, but were cast over in a white haze. She felt her hands dampen with sweat and bit her lower lip. She looked back at the horse, watched it as it watched her. It seemed to be screaming out to her, as if it could talk to her, plead with her, if she would just listen.

But she couldn't understand. She didn't have the ability. Jade wanted to believe she held Wild Magic inside her, but she didn't. The fact was simple. She didn't have the ability to help this animal. Her mother could have. Maybe that's what the horse sensed; a distant relation. Jade sighed. There was nothing she could do.

The man with the knife positioned himself with the knife only to be butted three feet away and back when the horse reared its head back and slammed into him with enough force to knock the breath out him. The men struggled with her, the ropes they were using to hold her down being tightened. The horse had spirit; and that spoke volumes. She was young, too. Jade was no expert, but the horses looked as if she were still growing.

Without realizing it, her hand reached out to one of the men. His head jerked to her when he felt her pulling him back. He spoke words she couldn't understand. But she didn't have to. He was not pleased. She pushed passed him, grabbed another arm and hauled another man back. Justice grabbed her arm, yanked savagely and growled, "What are you doing?"

Jade wrenched her arm away before she took the 2 seconds to steep her magic. It leapt from her fingers and sparked on the ground. Two more men, noticing the odd magic, stepped back. She pushed forward past the last two men with ropes and the one with the knife and turned to face him. "You can't kill her."

They looked at her funny. Then they looked at each other. The man with the knife stepped forward, as if to continue with his unfinished chore. Jade put up her hands. She wouldn't be able to stop anyone if they wanted to just shove by her, but she figured her magic probably held some sway.

She let the movement of her hands carry the magic out. Let a small stream of green reach out and twine in her fingers. They itched for only a moment before she felt it ready to be released. Small drops of green magic seeped from her hand and fell to the ground like drops of water.

The men stood mesmerized, starring at her hands and then her face. She noticed one man talking to another, pointing to his eyes as he looked at her, the other nodded in dumbfounded confusion.

She stood for endless seconds, wondering what she was supposed to do. How was she supposed to communicate with people who shared no words with her?


End file.
